Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures
by Lily Nadesico
Summary: Following the Sinnoh League, Ash and his friends return to Kanto, where unexpected news and reunions cause them to embark on a brand new adventure, possibly the greatest in their lives! Pokeshipping, Contestshipping, Penguinshipping.
1. Chapter 1

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Hello, everyone! As you can see, I've decided to try my hand at Pokemon writing... and what better way to do it than writing a long and hopefully engrossing epic? **

**First off, let's give the setting for this story. This fanfic starts right at the Sinnoh Grand Festival finals... and will end up altering quite a few events from the canon series, starting from this chapter! What can I say, there are quite a few things in the final episodes of the Sinnoh saga I didn't agree with, so I decided to give those episodes a different spin. Hopefully, you'll find them satisfying...**

**Should anyone be interested in the pairings I will use, know that this story will feature Pokeshipping, Contestshipping and Penguinshipping, though I will try to keep a reasonable balance of action and romance. This fanfiction also disregards the "Arceus and the Jewel of Life" movie, and the new Isshu episodes. Just as a final reminder, you'll find that I made some slight alterations to the characters' Pokemon teams - you be the judge whether they're for the better or not, but I thought these changes made sense...**

**Pokemon and all related trademarks are property of Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri. This fanfiction has been written for the sake of giving something interesting to read to all Pokemon fans, and I hope I succeed on that. I do own some OCs that will show up later on in the story.**

**With that out of the way... let's begin! Happy reading!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 1 - The Grand Festival finals!**

In the arena where the final match of the Sinnoh Grand Festival was going to be held, the excitement of the audience was skyrocketing. Only the day before, they had had the luck to witness two memorable competitions, where the young upstarts Dawn and Zoey defeated their respective opponents Jessie and Nando ... and now, the two finalists were about to step in the competition arena again, this time against each other! The winner of this battle would have become the new champion of Sinnoh ... a title to which all Pokemon Coordinators aspired!

Already dressed in her elegant yellow Coordinator dress, her long blue hair neatly combed back, and a pink bow on the collar, Dawn carefully looked at herself in the mirror and took a pair of deep breaths. This was the most important part of the competition - she had struggled long and hard to get there, time and again she had known the humiliation of defeat ... and now, she knew that she had to do her best! Although her opponent was Zoey, one of her best friends...

Dawn was not sure whether she could actually win, if she had to be honest with herself... ever since the beginning of her Pokemon journey, Dawn had always admired Zoey, considering her as a mentor and an example to follow. She always regarded Zoey as her better... However, if she didn't do her best in this final competition, it would have been a lack of respect for herself, her opponent, her own Pokemon, and the friends who had always supported her, Ash, Brock, Kenny, Zoey herself and all the others...

No, it was not the right attitude in such a situation: now she had to think of Zoey not as an impassable wall, but rather as her opponent who expected her to do her best in this confrontation! Dawn had improved a lot since she began her journey, and had learned many things ... she was no longer a naive child full of herself, as she was in the beginning. Now she and Zoey were facing each other, as friends who had the same goal... this was her greatest opportunity to prove to herself that all the time she had spent on bettering herself was not wasted!

"Okay!" she exclaimed, lightly slapping herself on the cheeks, as if she wanted to stay vigilant. "That's it, Dawn, this is your best chance! Go out there and do your best!"

She gave a quick glance at the clock affixed to the wall of her dressing room. There was still a quarter of an hour to the beginning of the match... there was no need to go paranoid right now!

Calm down, take a deep breath, get seated... this was the right way to stay sharp and concentrated until the competition. Lucinda did so, and felt a little more relaxed already... Then, she glanced at her Pokeball, thinking about the strategy she intended to use to win this match. Sure, the Togekiss that had been given to her by Princess Salvia was a skilled and powerful Pokemon, but ... perhaps, for this competition, it was not quite the right Pokemon to use. Afer all, Togekiss had been in her team for too short a time, and she had not yet gained enough confidence with her... perhaps, it was better to settle for something more... 'classic', so to speak?

Now, Dawn was thinking that mixing things up a little could be a good idea...

"Hmm ..." the blue-haired girl said to herself. "This time ... this time I could use a different strategy..."

oooooooooo

"Thank you for your wait, ladies and gentlemen ... and welcome to the last match in the Sinnoh Grand Festival!" the enthusiastic presenter exclaimed, holding the microphone as if it was the hilt of a sword. "Up until now, we have seen a lot of exciting fights ... and all the competitors have done their best to qualify for the finals ... but only two were able to earn this privilege, and soon they'll perform for you here, in this arena!"

The audience erupted in a thunderous applause and, seated near the battle arena, the two friend who had accompanied Dawn through her journey, stood up in encouragement. Ash from Pallet Town, Pokemon trainer and aspiring Pokemon Master, and his best friend Brock, former Gym Leader of Pewter City, were eager to see their travelling companion's display of skill.

"Man, I'm so excited… and to think that I'm not even the one to step in the arena!" Ash exclaimed, taking a glance at his ever-faithful Pikachu, who remained perched on his shoulder, looking at the arena just as intently. "You're also looking forward to the deciding fight, aren't you, Pikachu?"

"_Pika pika!_" the yellow mouse squeaked, merrily perking his ears up. Ash chuckled to himself, then turned to Brock. "In this regard, Brock… do you believe that Dawn has any chance of winning, in this confrontation?"

"Hard to say at this point ... I must admit that since we have known her, Dawn has made much progress, and now she certainly has much more of a chance to win. On the other hand, Zoey does have more experience, and this will play in her favor ... " replied the darker-skinned boy, looking thoughtful. It was sometimes difficult, in fact, to imagine what Brock was thinking, since he kept his eyes constantly shut, and one couldn't see his emotions very well...

"Hmm ..." Ash replied, dubiously. However, Brock's answer did not damage in any way the confidence he felt towards his blue-haired travelling companion. "Well, I'm still convinced that Dawn will win this one! Come on, Dawn! We are all rooting for you… do your best!"

"_Pikachu_!" Pikachu exclaimed, standing up on his trainer's shoulder, and raising a paw in the air to cheer!

"And now, ladies and gentlemen... let me introduce our two finalists! To my right, a rising star among Sinnoh's Coordinators… DAWN! " the presenter exclaimed, pointing to her right: on that side of the arena, spotlights lit up immediately, and a blue-haired girl, dressed in a cute pink dress, came out with a confident skip to her step, holding a hand up to greet the audience, who responded with warm applause of welcome. Dawn got to her side of the arena and got in position, holding the two Pokeballs she had chosen for this competition. Even from such a distance, Ash could see that his friend's heart was racing with excitement...

"And, to my left corner..." replied the presenter. "Her final challenge, the coordinator who gave us a memorable performance against Nando... let's all give a warm welcome to… ZOEY!"

The elegant red-haired coordinator made her entrance from the other side, wearing a light green dress which looked somewhat like a tuxedo, and was in turn illuminated by the spotlights as she got to her side of the arena, a Pokeball already in her hand. Lucinda saw her best friend and rival look up and stare into her eyes, smiling happily.

"Well, Dawn ... I am very glad we get to face each other in the end! I see you've come a long way!" Zoey greeted her. "However, do not believe for a moment that I'm going to go easy on you! I will do my very best to win this competition!"

"I wouldn't have it any other way!" Dawn answered. "I am going to do the same... and I'll try my best to win! Do not think I'll make life easy for you!"

"Determined to win, I see ... just the way I like it!" Zoey responded, favorably impressed. "Okay ... so I guess we're both ready to go! Good luck!"

"Well, well, ladies and gentlemen... I see that our coordinators are both very confident, and have decided to show us the best of their abilities! " the presenter commented. "If that is the case, I do not have anything to add, but… to say good luck to both of you... please, do your best, and may the best coordinator win!"

The audience's applauses showered the arena once again, and the two coordinators threw their Pokeballs up in the air, letting out the Pokemon they had selected for this final confrontation! "Okay, it's time to start the show!" Zoey exclaimed. "Glameow! Gallade! It's all up to you!"

"We will not be outdone ... Piplup! Ambipom! You can get out!" Dawn said. The Pokeballs opened in mid-air, and their respective Pokemon came out in the form of trails of light that landed on the ground of the arena... and solidified a split-second later, presenting the public with the cute blue penguin that had already become Dawn's mascot, and the strange monkey with two tails - each ending with a big hand - that she had often used in competition! On Zoey's side, on the other hand, the Pokemon that appeared were her feline Pokemon... and another looking humanoid Pokemon that Ash and Brock had never seen before: it looked a lot like a Gardevoir, but had a decidedly fiercer and more masculine countenance, with a slender body yet muscular forearms that looked a little too developed when compared to the rest of the body, with retractable blades on his elbows, his head like a gladiator's helmet, a white, grim-looking face, and a light green crest on top of his skull.

"Hmm... what do you know, this time Dawn did not want to use Togekiss... " Brock commented, looking with curiosity at the Pokemon that had just been brought out. "I think Dawn has decided to use a Pokemon with which she already has more familiarity and confidence... I guess she already has some strategy in mind!"

"I hope so ..." Ash said, pulling out his Pokedex. "Still... I don't remember ever seeing the Pokemon Zoey is using now... it kinda looks like a Gardevoir, but there's something different ..."

"_Gallade. The Blade Pokemon. Psychic / Fighting Type. When he wants to protect his trainer, he extends his elbows as if they were swords and fights with determination. Since he's capable of perceiving his opponent's next move, his counter-attack is very fast, fierce and effective_. " The electronic encyclopaedia explained. Ash could not hold back a brief grimace of disappointment.

"Gosh ... if it' s true that Gallade is able to guess his opponent's, Dawn has her work cut out for her in this match…" the young aspiring Pokemon Master commented... before he caught sight of a familiar female figure coming up beside of him. He looked up in curiosity, and saw, much to his surprise, that it was Johanna, Dawn's mother, at that moment smiling kindly at him!

"Oh ... Mrs. Johanna, what a surprise!" Brock greeted her. "We did not expect to see you right now ... please, would you like to sit with us? We can make space for you easily..."

"Thank you, Brock, and... pleased to meet you as well!" the former coordinator greeted back. "I came to watch the Grand Festival finals, as I thought it was only fair that I was here in person to cheer for my little Dawn... and now I see that she's in front of her rival! Though I'm afraid this will be kind of a difficult battle for Dawn..."

While Ash and Brock moved to make room for Johanna, there were other people, both on the stands and elsewhere, who were carefully watching the match that was about to begin ... and in particular, a trio of well-known troublemakers, who were keeping themselves at a safe distance from the audience to avoid attracting too much attention to themselves...

"Hmm... and so, the brat has chosen her monkey friend, huh? " Jessie commented, with a hint of bitterness. After all, Dawn was the one she had lost to earlier in the Grand Festival… "Hmph ... well, she'd do well not to get herself defeated. She beat me, so I do not accept her to lose against anyone else."

"You sure have taken this competition thing seriously, huh, Jessie?" Meowth, Team Rocket's trademark speaking Pokemon, commented snarkily. "I hate to think of the outburst we'll have to put up with the outburst if the twerp loses..."

" Well, we'll see in a bit... " James, who was staring at the arena with contained excitement, meekly suggested. "Maybe the girl will pull off some nice trick, and leave us all dumbfounded, who can tell?"

Jessie grinned slightly to herself. "Hmm... for once, James, I have to admit you have a point! Hey, brat! Give that red-headed tomboy the what-for! Do not let yourself be beaten! You are my rival, I have to be the one to defeat you!"

"_Wobbuffet_!" the weird azure Psychic Pokemon exclaimed, once again spontaneously popping out of his Pokeball and doing his military salute! Immediately, an irritated Jessie forced him to return to his ball.

"Ugh… Darn, you stupid little frump!" the reproach came. "Don't you dare spoil the dramatic tension of the moment anymore, do I explain myself?"

And in another wing of the stadium, a young girl about Dawn's age, wearing a pretty white dress with blue skirt, and peach-colored hair tied in two extravagant spirals on each side of her head, was in turn looking at the arena, accompanied by her faithful Plusle and Minun. Ursula, the rich coordinator that Dawn had defeated in a previous Grand Festival match, was waiting anxiously for the battle to begin... and if she were to be completely honest to herself, she too secretly hoped that Dawn would win the match. It would have be a humiliation for her, if Dawn, after managing to somehow defeat her, was forced to stop now!

"Okay, now it's the moment of truth..." Ursula murmured. "Dawn... try not to be defeated! Do not be overcome by that lanky beanstalk... I would not accept to be humiliated in such a way!"

oooooooooo

On the other hand, in a completely different continent, there was someone else who was watching the Sinnoh Grand Festival's TV broadcast with enthusiasm... a young brown-haired female coordinator, with a red bandana tied over her head; and a small boy a few years her junior with blue hair and glasses, both of whom were sitting in front of a big television screen, in the main hall of a large Pokemon Center: May and her younger brother Max, both of whom had already been traveling companions for Ash and Brock! For May, it was a very important moment... mostly because, not too long before, she had been a bit of a mentor to Dawn, and this was the time for the blue-haired girl to prove her worth!

"What do you say, sis?" Do you think Dawn has any chance of winning this match? " Max asked, adjusting his glasses while never taking his eyes away from the television. The competition was about to begin, and the lights were gradually dampening...

May nodded in confidence. 'Yes, I'm sure she can do it! " she said. "Dawn took the lessons she learned during her journey to heart. I am sure she's going to winthis, and even if she doesn't, she will still put up a great show!"

"Yes, I do not find this hard to believe." said a male voice, its tone slightly arrogant yet gallant, coming from behind the two siblings. "On the other hand, her opponent seems to know her well and is definitely one who knows what she's doing. Not just everyone can train a Gallade."

When May turned around, she was surprised to see a green-haired boy of about her same age standing just a few feet away from her and her brother, his ubiquitous red rose in his right hand. "Drew! I did not expect to see you here!" May greeted him. "You too came to see the finale of the Sinnoh Grand Festival?"

Drew, always maintaining his trademark aloof look, shrugged his shoulders. "Actually, I was just passing through, and I happened to be here by accident. So I decided to take a look, just to spend some time." he answered. "Among other things, watching coordinators from another continent perform could give interesting ideas on how to improve ones' own style, don't you agree? I don't really care who wins or loses, as long as they put up a good show, I am satisfied with that."

"Well... in fact, I don't think it will hurt to take a few pointers..." Max said… and the cheers of the audience were heard again from the television screen, which caused the three of them to interrupt their discussion and focus on the competition…

oooooooooo

"Well then... Here I go!" Dawn exclaimed, trying to get anearly advantage on her friend and rival. "Piplup! Climb on one of Ambipom's hands, and use your BubbleBeam! Ambipom... you get ready to throw Piplup up, and continue with a Swift attack!"

The penguin and the two-tailed monkey obeyed immediately: Piplup leapt on one of Ambipom's tail hands, and Ambipom threw the penguin Pokemon as far up in the air as he could. The latter start to gracefully spin around himself like a ballerina, opening his little beak and throwing around a flurry of bubbles that glittered with all the colors of the rainbow! A spectacular trail of bubbles start to float around Piplup ... Then, Ambipom conjured up a group of twinkling five-pinted stars in the palms of his tail-hands and tossed them upwards, so they they ended up in the middle of the bubble vortex without bursting any of them! The bubbles reflected the light emanating from the stars, creating spectacular iridescent effects on the audience!

But Zoey had no intention of letting her opponent dictate the rules of the game. "Hmm ... a good start, Dawn, I must admit ... but you just wait to see this! Gallade! Use your Psycho Cut to burst those bubbles... and you, Glameow, prepared to strike Ambipom with a Fake Out!" the coordinator with the green dress exclaimed. The alternate evolved form of Kirlia squatted on the ground and brought its arms back for a moment, then moved them into the air, creating a powerful arc in front of himself and generating a pair of shiny, arc-shaped trails! The Psycho Cut barreled through the bubble barrier, generating even more spectacular lighting effects, and struck the stars generated by the Swift attack one by one... while Glameow, with his trademark speed, ran to Ambipom... and gave him a double slap on the face using both front paws! Ambipom staggered backward, stunned by the rapidity of the blow, and missed an opportunity to continue with his performance... and a moment later, Dawn's points, displayed on a scoreboard above the arena, lowered significantly. Things were already looking grim for Dawn… The battle had just begun, and already she was falling behind! But nothing was lost, and Dawn, although disappointed to see her strategy foiled so easily, tried not to think about that and focused on the next move ...

"Ooooh ... mais oui, now this is what I'd call a spectacular attack!" Fantina, the elegant Ghost Pokemon Gym Leader, exclaimed as she watched the battle from the jury's stand. "Zoey demonstrates, once again, to be capable of taking advantage of her opponent's moves and use them in her favor! But we should not say anything yet, because the competition has just begun!"

"That is true... " a Nurse Joy said, sitting beside the elegant Gym Leader. "Zoey is surely experienced as a coordinator, but if what we heard about Dawn is true, she will not be stopped by this mishap! She still has a lot of tricks to show us!"

"All is well, it just means we will have to try a little harder... stay focused, Dawn, now is not the time to panic... " she said to herself the girl, trying to think of a way to deal with that Psychic / Fighting Pokemon who was already beginning to give her problems. As far as Lucinda could guess, Gallade seemed to be an agile, but not too strong, Pokemon… relying on smarts and quick attacks to get the upper hand... and Zoey surely must have built her strategy around that! She had to remain calm and think of a way to counter it...

Piplup landed at that time, and when Zoey seemed about to order her Gallade to use another move, Dawn took the initiative once again. "Okay, Piplup, use Hydro Pump... and you, Ambipom, do a Rapid Spin!" the blue-haired coordinator exclaimed.

"Gallade, now use a Leaf Cutter! Just as we did during training!" Zoey ordered. "Glameow! Get close to that Ambipom and prepare to use Shadow Claw!"

Zoey's choice immediately raised suspicion from Ash, Brock and Johanna. "Hmm ... if Zoey has ordered her Glameow to use a Ghost-type move, which Ambipom is immune to, it is clear that she has some sort of strategy in mind..." Brock thought out loud

"You're right... Dawn should be very careful, she's already at a disadvantage." Ash commented. Johanna, though reluctantly, had to agree with this assessment.

"Unfortunately, her friend can easily predict her strategy... which means that Dawn is still not at her level." She commented. But shortly after, she seemed to become more confident and was back to smiling in motherly pride. "But .. in any case, if there one thing I can say for certain about my daughter, is that she's matured a lot ... and she will not be put off by this problem! She can still win! "

oooooooooo

"Grrr ... come on, brat! A little more commitment, for crying out loud! " Jessie roared from her place on the stands. "You have to win! I know that you can win! Win for me!"

oooooooooo

In the arena, Piplup obey his trainer's order and, after taking a deep breath, he raised his head and shot a blast of high-pressure water that thundered upwards toward the ceiling, and then came down, creating a spectacular fountain in the middle of the battlefield! At the same time, Ambipom begin to whirl about like a breakdancer, extending his two tails upwards in an helicopter-like manner, before jumping on top of the water jet! Gallade, for his part, repeated the same move as before, spreading his arms wide... and then shot towards Piplup, keeping his arms open and surrounded by a bright emerald-green aura.

"Wow, that Pokemon sure is very versatile ..." commented Ash. "I've never seen such a Fighting-type who can use Grass-type moves... except a Breloom, that is!"

Dawn reacted quickly enough: Ambipom rose up in the air, propelled by the momentum she had gained, then reached Piplup's water jet and entered it… and that was when Dawn gave her penguin Pokemon a signal with a wave of her arm! Piplup quickly jerked its head downwards, and the water jet hurled Ambipom towards the unprepared Gallade, who was about to ruin the little penguin's move with his Leaf Cutter! Caught completely off guard, Gallade lifted his arms in front of himself to block the attack...

"Ambipom... DoubleSlap!" Dawn exclaimed. The monkey, with a mischievous grin, unleashed a barrage of blows from its tail-hands on Gallade, hitting his still-glowing arms! With every shot, sparks and drops of water, tinted with an emerald hue, rose from the point of impact, reflecting the light in every direction! Zoey widened her eyes and remain open-mouthed as Gallade reeled from the furious attack, and her points started to fall sharply, until they stood at more or less the same level as Dawn!

But the situation was about to get even harder for Dawn – Zoey's Glameow was sneaking up to Piplup and Ambipom, and when the last hit of the Doubleslap attack struck, and Gallade jumped back to try to regroup ... the cat-like Pokemon swooped down on Ambipom, claws unsheathed and surrounded by an evanescent black flame! The blow went through Ambipom's body without harming her, and for a moment it looked like the monkey was surprised by the useless attack... but a split second later, Glameow managed to take advantage Ambipom's confusion, literally jumped over her with an agile leap, and landed behind her, firmly grasping one of her tails!

"Excellent! That worked as a distraction!" Zoey exclaimed. "And now ... Glameow, Aerial Ace!"

The feline Pokemon meowed in agreement and jumped up, still holding one of Ambipom's tails... Then, with a jerking movement, he threw Ambipom to the ground! Fortunately, the monkey Pokemon managed to get back in a guarding position at the last moment, and slammed both tail-hands on the ground, softening the impact and then getting back on her feet with a somersault! Dawn's points went down again, but as a result of the partly unsuccessful attack, Zoey lost some too... however, the red-haired girl did not waste time and ordered her cat Pokemon to continue the attack.

"Okay, Glameow ... use a Thunderbolt against Ambipom! Gallade, go with a Sword Dance!" Zoey ordered. Glameow hissed, with a slight grin on his face, and his spring-like tail shot up, while a crackling lightning appeared on his tip... and then darted at high speed towards the monkey!

But unfortunately for Zoey, Dawn and her Ambipom were prepared for that move! "Ambipom ... defend yourself with Protection!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed. Ambipom put both tail-hands in front of herself, and a glimmering shield materialized out of nowhere a few inches away from her body, which caused Glameow's move to disperse without harm! At the same time, Gallade did a short but elegant dance, spinning in place with both arms and one leg outstretched... then, it landed in a fighting pose! Again, because of the failed attack, Zoey's points were reduced... but Lucinda also suffered a mild penalty due to the perfectly-executed Sword Dance. Now the two contenders were more or less locked in a draw, with Zoey in the lead only by a handful of points.

"These two competitors have really deserved to reach this last battle, ladies and gentlemen!" Miranda, the presenter, exclaimed, watching in rapt attention. "Just look at their style and their strategies! I still cannot make a prediction on who will win... and if you ask me, I think they both deserve to win!"

"In fact, from what I can see, both have developed very good strategies ... " commented Fantina. "Both have predicted what her opponent can do, and they both thought of a way to exploit it in her favor. But at the same time, both are very adaptable, and know how to develop a strategy on the spot! C'est vraiment incredible!"

" Hmm ... okay, I think it's time for a change of strategy! I'm getting nowhere this way..." Zoey told herself, thinking about a tactic that would most likely have caught Dawn by surprise. "Gallade, use Signal Beam... And you, Glameow, prepare to strike with Iron Tail!"

oooooooooo

"Huh?" But... what's that Gallade doing? " Ash exclaimed from the stands, as he watched the Psychic / Fighting Pokemon preparing to shoot the Signal Beam attack... against Glameow rather than against his opponents! Johanna, from her experience as a coordinator, understood straight away that this was the beginning of a tricky strategy, and her expression became serious. Now her daughter's victory was really getting unlikely...

And, one moment later, Gallade shot a bast of colorful energy towards the cat Pokemon... who, in turn, raised his glowing coiled tail and spun around, striking the Signal Beam with a powerful blow! Immediately, the multicolored beam split up in a shower of light that immediately turned into a spectacular vortex! However, Dawn and Piplup looked ready to counter.

"Piplup, use Whirlpool! We'll counter this vortex, with a vortex in the opposite direction!" Dawn ordered. The penguin Pokemon chirped in understanding and created a vortex of water in front of him, which seemed about to clash with Gallade and Glameow's combined attack... but then, Dawn gave Ambipom an order that caught everyone by surprise! "And now, Ambipom... use a Swift attack! Right in the middle of Piplup's Whirlpool!"

"_Ambipom!_" the monkey Pokemon answered, applauding with his tail-hands. Once again, a bunch of shining stars fluttered in front of the monkey Pokemon and shot out, one after the other, in the direction of Piplup's Whirlpool attack! The effect was spectacular, and the vortex of water began shining in bright shades of yellow, red and blue... before the combined move neutralized Glameow and Gallade's barrage, resulting in an incredible burst of fireworks, which forced the two coordinators and the closest spectators to protect their eyes in order not to be dazzled! Even the Pokemon had to look down, following the shadows cast on the floor in order to get an idea of their opponents' position...

"Ooooh ... c'est magnifique!" Fantina exclaimed, as she put on a pair of sunglasses that she seemed to have pulled out of nowhere! "I really did not expect such a move! And I can safely say that Dawn has amazed everyone with an unexpected counter! This will surely cost Zoey a sizeable reduction in points, n'est pas?"

In fact, turning in the direction of the board, the Ghost Pokemon trainer saw that both contenders had had their points reduced ... but while Dawn had only lost a few points, Zoey had taken a much more important penalty, and now the two contenders were on a perfectly equal footing, with their points just a bit over half their starting number! The flurry of fireworks following the clash between the two attacks lasted for a few seconds, before visibility went back to normal... and the four Pokemon were all still on the field, and all in top form, seemingly itching to get back in the competition! Both coordinators, for their part, seemed to have been enjoying the light show themselves, while still concentrated on the battle!

"This battle... is even more exciting than I had hoped for! You've really come a long way, Dawn... and I'm happy for you and your Pokemon!" Zoey said to herself, smiling contentedly. "But... don't assume victory just yet, me and my Pokemon still have some surprises to show you!"

oooooooooo

"Go for it, Dawn! You're evenly matched now!" Ash exclaimed from the stands, rising from his seat and screaming his lungs out. Brock and Johanna were a lot more composed, but even they were beginning to feel the nervousness and anxiety... That competition was proving to be more unpredictable than anything they had ever seen, and they couldn't make any assumptions on who would win. At that point, anything could have happened...

"Come on, brat, continue to attack! Don't give in!" Jessie exclaimed, hitting the palm of her own hand with her fist. The token female of Team Rocket seemed to give it far too much fervor... and James and Meowth wisely decided to step backwards a little to avoid the risk of becoming her involuntary punching bags! Wobbuffet, who - like most of the time - was out of his Pokeball at the most inconvenient time, had not had the same foresight ... and now he was being grabbed by his nonexistant neck and squeezed like asponge by his trainer! With that ever-present vacant expression on his face, however, one could tell that he was barely noticing...

"Hehehee ... I have to admit that to be a second-class coordinator, the girl has style." Ursula admitted, a little reluctantly. "But .. do not get too comfortable, Dawn... for now I'll be content with the results I got. But I'm still convinced that in the end, I will prove to be the better coordinator!"

oooooooooo

"Hmm... now this is a nice display of skill!" Drew commented, looking with barely noticeable admiration at the battle on the TV screen. In fact, almost everyone in the Pokemon Center stood with eyes turned upwards, anxiously awaiting the outcome of the battle. "This battle is in full swing ... and yet you can not make any predictions! Those two are really at an high level..."

"Yeah, you can say that again ..." Max said in amazement. "Zoey seems to have more experience, but Dawn comes up with some pretty brilliant counters... they're really evenly matched!"

May smiled, holding up a clenched fist in front of herself. "I am sure Dawn will win... don't ask me why, I just know this!"

oooooooooo

Zoey decided to delay her next attack, so that Dawn, counting on a favorable moment, would be tempted into continuing her attack ... and that's exactly what happened! The blue-haired girl decided to keep her rival under pressure, and this time she decided to take the initiative...

"Well, let's keep this up, boys! Ambipom, use a Double Team attack, and you, Piplup... get on Ambipom's hands and execute a Drill Peck attack!" she exclaimed, repeating a strategy she had used before. Piplup climbed in one of Ambipom's tail-hands, and the monkey Pokemon began running at a blinding speed, leaving afterimages in her wake. However, Gallade and Glameow remained in place, awaiting their opponents' next move... then, when Ambipom had accumulated enough speed, he simply threw Piplup against his opponents... and, thanks to Ambipom's Double Team, the penguin Pokemon, split in two identical images, each of them surrounded by a bright bluish-white aura of energy around and spinning like a drill! He sailed straight towards Gallade, as Ambipom continued to create residual images of herself... but Glameow still waited, eyes closed and grinning...

...and Zoey countered quickly and efficiently!

"Glameow! Delete all the duplicates... you know how!" exclaimed the green-clad coordinator! The feline Pokemon meowed again and flung itself at Ambipom with a flawless Faint attack, bypassing all the afterimages and striking the two-tailed monkey dead center! Immediately, Ambipom staggered backwards, and its residual images dissipated, as Piplup continued drilling its way towards Gallade...

"And now, Gallade... Vacuum Wave!"

Gallade's eyes opened wide and, just before Piplup's Double Team-enhanced Drill Peck could reach it, its after-image vanished. Gallade quickly moves his arms in front of himself and conjured a small energy vortex which struck the little blue penguin and flew to the other side of the arena, next to his teammate. The energy vortex created shining reflections that shone for an instant upon the stands, causing an effect similar to an instantaneous aurora borealis... and Dawn widened her eyes as her Pokemon simultaneously fell to the ground and her score lowered once again, putting her in a serious bind!

"Vacuum Wave is a very fast technique, which usually allows its user to attack first." Brock commented. "Zoey has used this knowledge to stop Piplup's Drill Peck... which would have been extremely dangerous for a Psychic / Fighting type."

"I understand... and then, there's the fact that Faint never misses, so that Double Team is useless against it... " Ash concluded. "Gee, sure Zoey knows his Pokemon very well... and she also knows how to exploit their features in the best way."

"This is why I said that it will not be easy for Dawn to win this competition ..." Johanna said, now more focused on the battlefield than ever. "Even if I have to say that Dawn has done a great job so far, despite these slip-ups..."

Zoey annoded to herself, and beckoned for Gallade and Glameow to retrat a little. Dawn probably imagined that her friend / rival wanted to buy time... and so, she was more than a little surprised when, as Zoey nodded once, Gallade unleashed another attack! This time it was a Night Slash, an attack consisting of an arc of black light darting towards Piplup and Ambipom and threatening to engulf them... but fortunately, Dawn reacted quickly, and gave Piplup his next order!

"Piplup, quick! Repel the attack with Whirlpool!" The penguin Pokemon obeyed and instantly shot a swirling vortex of water that intercepted the Gallade's Night Slash, shattering it into a shower of black sparks and bringing Zoey's score down a little. The Whirlpool continued on its way and threatened to overwhelm Gallade... but Zoey had predicted Dawn's move, and her Glameow once again intervened with an Iron Tail! The cat-like Pokemon, with a sly smile, struck the whirlpool and stopped it in mid-air, in an uncountable number of water drops... then, Gallade threw another Vacuum Wave at the Whirlpool, causing it to explode in a spectacular flurry of water droplets that created an impressive pattern around Glameow and Gallade.

Dawn's points dropped again, coming dangerously close to a quarter of her starting score, while Zoey still had just under half of hers! And the time was starting to run out... Dawn needed to quickly come up with a good idea something quickly, if she wanted to catch up!

oooooooooo

"Grr... what are you doing, you blue-haired rugrat! I told you that you can not lose to anyone else!" Jessie screamed from the gallery, attracting the surprised and angered looks some of the closer member of the audience. James, Meowth and Wobbuffet were doing their best to hold her, but to little avail... the whole deal was incensing her in a manner they definitely hadn't foreseen!

"Ugh... Wait, Jessie! Keep your hair on! We are not here to get... Argh!" James exclaimed, holding his friend with all his strength... but actually only managing to get himself dragged along by her!

"Quiet, Jessie, quiet! The battle is not over yet!" Meowth protested. "Maybe the brat can still win..."

oooooooooo

In Snowpoint City Gym, the Gym Leader Candice, several of her students and her friend Maylene - a Gym Leader herself - were watching anxiously, feeling the tension grow as Zoey came closer and closer to victory! Candice and Maylene were rooting for the red-haired coordinator, and the fact that she was at a clear advantage was reason to hope... but still, the two friends knew that, like in a Pokemon battle, anything could happen at any moment...

oooooooooo

"I see Miss Dawn did not use the Togekiss which you gave her, Princess Salvia..." a butler commented, in an almost apologetic tone, as he watched the competition together with the young princess who looked exactly like Dawn.

The princess, however, seemed to be in no way displeased by this fact ... "Well, after all, Dawn uses Togekiss to win her earlier battles..." the princess said with a slight smile, as she sipped a cup of hot tea. "I reckon Dawn decided to use a different strategy for this most important contest, using Pokemon that she was more familiar with. I, for one, I pray with all my heart that she emerges victorious..."

oooooooooo

And in front of a television screen in the lobby of another Pokemon Center, Kenny kept his fingers crossed, hoping for Dawn to get out of this sticky situation... there did not seem to be much hope for that, but the boy was still hoping...

oooooooooo

"Okay, guys ... at this point, we're going for broke!" Dawn told her Pokemon, who were both standing ready for another attack. Glameow and Gallade, on the other hand, seemed to have opted for a more defensive strategy, so that Zoey could retain the advantage she had accumulated.

"Ambipom, use a Focus Punch! And you, Piplup... ready a Blizzard attack and follow it up with another Drill Peck!"

Ambipom raised both her tails above her head and clapped her hands together, before powering up for a second... then, she slammed both her tails on the ground, shattering a portion of the arena and sending a shower of debris airborne! Just then, Piplup released his Blizzard attack, raising both of his tiny wings and blowing a chilling gale of wind and ice from his beak. The pieces of debris were hit by the freezing attack and were turned into large blocks of ice... and immediately after, the little penguin threw himself at the falling ice shards, spinning on himself like a drill. Piplup struck the ice blocks head on, shattering them and sending dozens of shards in all directions... but before they could reach the ground, Ambipom dashed up to the largest pieces and split them in half with a perfectly-executed Brick Break attack! Zoey's points went down a little, but she didn't seem to be particularly worried about that, and immediately took measures to muck up her opponent's strategy.

"And now, for the finale ... Gallade, Psycho Cut! Glameow! Use a Thunderbolt... to power up Gallade's attack!" Zoey exclaimed. Gallade squatted down on one knee and tried to focus, creating an aura of psychic energy on his arms... and then tossed the Psycho Cut against the advancing Piplup! Glameow wasted no time, and after creating another crackling ball of lightning on the tip of his tail, he tossed it towards the Psycho Cut, turning it into a crackling, glittering arc of golden electricity! Dawn's eyes snapped open in disbelief as Piplup was hit out of his Drill Peck and throw on the ground, stunned. Then, the electrified Psycho Cut barreled towards Ambipom, who barely had time to get into a guarding position before he was struck! With all of her strength, the monkey Pokemon began pushing in the opposite direction, but it seemed to be an hopeless endeavor, as Dawn's point dropped again, edging dangerously close to zero! However, Ambipom refused to surrender and continued pushing, determined to fight to the end!

But there was nothing she could do. Slowly but surely, Ambipom began losing her ground, and it was not long before the combined Psycho Cut and Thunderbolt attacks began getting the upper hand on her.

After a moment of bewilderment, Dawn bowed her head a little and smiled, somewhat sadly. She seemed to have realized that defeat was inevitable, and apparently wanted to face it with honor.

"I sure have to hand it to you, Dawn..." Zoey commented, speaking to her best friend who, in turn, raised her head and looked at the redhead straight in the eyes. "You fought with honor, and have proven yourself both as a coordinator and as a person. I have to admit, more than one during this confrontation, I found myself at a disadvantage, so... congratulations on almost winning, Dawn!"

Dawn smiled in turn. "Thank you, Zoey! But I have to say, I think you kinda took the words right of my mouth!"

Zoey's expression went from confidence to confusion. "What?"

And, one second later, Ambipom stopped getting pushed back, her hind legs firmly planted on the ground! With renewed determination, Dawn decided to make the most of the competition's last few moments, and gave her last command! "Because I still have one last card to play, and I will play it... now!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed. "Ambipom, this is it! Use Last Resort... and break through that Psycho Cut!"

It all happened in an instant.

Ambipom, who until that moment seemed to be about to get overwhelmed by Gallade and Glameow's combined attack, was surrounded by an halo of white energy that lit her up like a beacon in the night! The audience let out an exclamation of pure wonder when the two-tailed monkey, in an unexpected burst of energy, shattered the electrified Psycho Cut, unleashing a spectacular display of electric fireworks! Then, Ambipom rushed forward and, as if she was flying a few inches off the ground, she darted against the astonished Gallade, who had by then lost much of his stoic countenance, widening his eyes and guarding himself with his arms in an attempt to defend himself. An alarmed Glameow tried to interfere and attack Ambipom by surprise, but Dawn and Piplup intercepted him!

"Piplup, knock him away with Bubblebeam!" Dawn exclaimed. The cat Pokemon was struck by a rapid barrage of colorful bubbles, which prevented him from interfering with Ambipom's attack... and one second later, with the end of the competition only mere ticks of the clock away, Ambipom closed in on Kirlia's alternate evolution and hit, with devastating effects! One of Ambipom's tail-hands slid through Gallade's defense and hit the Blade Pokemon in the stomach, causing it to double over... and then, Ambipom delivered a decisive blow to Gallade's chin, lifting him off the ground and causing him to fly a short distance!

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Gallade sailed through the air and landed with a thud, amidst the audience's (and Zoey's) stunned silence! Zoey's points were reduced considerably... and a split second later, a sound signal declared the end of the match!

Dawn, Zoey and pretty much the whole audience slowly turned to the scoreboard, anxious to know the outcome of the competition... and, much to their surprise, they saw that the two contestants' points seemed to be more or less equal! It was impossible to see who had won, and only the computer's report would have finally given the verdict...

"This... this is amazing, ladies and gentlemen!" Miranda commented incredulously. "With this last move, Dawn has dramatically reduced Zoey's points... but it still is difficult to see who has won... We can only wait for the judges' final call..."

Everyone held their breath, waiting for the response. On the scoreboard, both Dawn's and Zoey's images were still lit up...

A few seconds more...

And Zoey's image flickered out, leaving only Dawn's to show on the scoreboard!

"Just... just for a handful of points..." Miramda murmured. "Just for a handful of points, victory in this final round of the Sinnoh Grand Festival goes to... Dawn, the rising star from Twinleaf Town!"

The spotlights lit up again and illuminated the blue-haired girl, as the audience exploded in a chorus of applause and cheers! Ash and Pikachu got up from their seats and raised a fist in the air in victory. The more collected Brock simply clapped his hands happily... as did Johanna, watching her daughter with pride and excitement!

"Congratulations, honey, you did it!" said Johanna. "You've won your greatest victory... I am really proud of you!"

oooooooooo

James and Meowth breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness Dawn had won, or else Jessie would never have let them hear the end of it!

For her part, their teammate seemed to have completely put aside her previous attitude, and was now standing proudly, hands on her hips and nose in the air! "Hohohohooo!" she exclaimed, letting out her patented noblewoman's laugh. "I told you that the brat couldn't lose like that, didn't I?"

"Yeah, this coming from someone who was flipping out 'cause she was losing..." Meowth muttered sarcastically.

Elsewhere in the audience, Ursula stood up, not entirely dissatisfied with the outcome. "Well, that's about it... actually, I'm not disappointed at all. Next time, I'll make sure I defeat Dawn... and in a way, that would mean indirectly winning this Grand Festival as well!" she said to herself . "Plusle, Minun! We have seen what I was interested in, we have no more business here!"

The two Pichu-lookalikes followed their trainer as she stood up, walked out the row of seats and to the stairs leading to the exit...

oooooooooo

As for the two contenders, they both seemed to be literally frozen in awe! Dawn was still gawking at the scoreboard that had just declared her victory... and she could scarcely believe what she was seeing!

She had won... she had really won the Grand Festival! Even though she had struggled with all of her willpower, she still wasn't sure she could win... and she was not expecting her efforts to be rewarded this spectacularly! She was almost afraid that this was all a dream, and that she was about to wake up... and instead, when she blinked, she still saw her two Pokemon in front of her, and the audience stll cheering for her victory! Her eyes full of tears of joy, Dawn knelt down to embrace her Pokemon!

"We... we won! We won! Piplup! Ambipom! I still can't believe this! It's... it's too good to be true!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed, "Thank you! Thank you, guys! You made me proud! You made everyone proud!"

"Pip! LUUUP!"

"Am-bi ... POOOOM!"

On the other hand, Gallade and Glameow were heading back to their trainer, their heads bowed down, and ashamed of their defeat just as victory was so close at hand ... but the red-haired coordinator, shaking her amazement off, smiled kindly and knelt down to comfort them and cheer them up.

"Don't be sad, guys, you have nothing to blame yourselves for... You too, gave an amazing performance!" she said quietly. Although it was obvious that she was a little disappointed at her loss, she was too much of a good sport to be angry. "Gallade... have you seen how much the audience cheered for you? You left them all stunned! And... Glameow, once again, you proved your worth as a partner and a friend! Thank you both for your efforts!"

Finally, Zoey winked to her Pokemon and smiled. "Alright, guys, listen up... this evening, we'll commemorate your performance here with a second helping of your favourite foods! Now... come on, let's stand up! We have a winner to congratulate here!"

As the audience continued cheering enthusiastically over Dawn's victory, the two girls and their Pokemon walked to the center of the arena... and as they finally came face to face, they shook each other's hand in a display of respect and friendship!

"Congratulations, Dawn! I was completely caught off guard there!" Zoey remarked. "You really proved yourself back there... and so, I am happy to yield to you!"

"I think... I think it is I who should be congratulating you, Zoey!" Dawn answered, her voice still shaking with emotion. "Truth be told... I think I only won by luck! The truth is, of us two, you're still the better coordinator!"

Zoey chuckled happily. "Hehee... well, Dawn, as they say, luck is kind of a skill, now isn't it?" the redhead answered, as Gallade and Glameow elegantly bowed in front of Ambipom and Piplup, who courteously returned the gesture. "And anyway... nothing changes the fact that you have still won! Congratulations, Dawn... this is your day to be in the spotlight!"

"Thanks, Zoey! Thank you, Piplup, Ambipom... and all the friends who supported me!" Dawn concluded. Then, the two coordinators raised their hands in the direction of the audience, whose cheers only rose in volume! Their Pokemon, too, turned in that direction and were met with the applause of countless people from all over Sinnoh and beyond!

"Ladies and gentlemen ... today we have witnessed a memorable event!" Miranda, her microphone tightly gripped in her hand, commented. "These two rivals have given us an unforgettable show of willpower, friendship and sportsmanship! Just look at how they're now shaking hands, like real sisters!"

"Oui ... this truly is one of the best Festivals I ever had the honor to witness!" Fantina said. "It was fought with pride and determinaton... I wish all Pokemon battles were so full of camaraderie!"

"I think Miss Fantina here has perfectly summed up what we all think!" Miranda concluded. "So... people of Sinnoh, a warm applause to the winners of this tournament! Yes, because... both of them can rightly be seen as winners! Dawn and Zoey!"

As another round of applause reverberated in the arena, the sun began to gently lower itself beyond the horizon, marking the end of a memorable day for everyone...

oooooooooo

"Yaaaaay! I knew she could do it!"

May leapt up from her seat in joy and hugged the first person she had within arm's reach... who just happened to be a quite surprised Drew! "Dawn won! She did it! I was sure of it!"

"Ack... uh... sis, we are all very happy for your friend..." Max commented, a large sweatdrop pouring down his head. "But... I think your friend kinda needs oxygen to breathe, you know!"

"Huh?" May stopped herself cold and looked at the person she was hugging for all it was worth, only to find herself looking at a smiling, if surprised, green-haired boy!

"Well, May, I'll admit I'm not that bad-looking, but isn't that a bit much? We are in front of quite a few people, after all..." Drew said calmly. Immediately, May released him and turned around, her face tinted red with embarassment... and Max put his hand in front of his mouth and chuckled!

"Ugh... no laughing, you!" May tried to salvage her dignity, and Drew sighed and shrugged his shoulders. Really, some people never changed...

oooooooooo

Princess Salvia placed her now empty cup of tea on the porcelain plate in front of her, smiling in satisfaction. She was right, then... she had entrusted her Togekiss to a reliable person.

"I am pleased that your friend emerged victorious in this competition, Milady." her butler politely said. "If I am allowed to coment on that, I would say she put up an mpressive show."

"I agree with that, Jerome." the young princess said, standing eleganty up from her seat. "And I hope that someday I will be able to meet her again."

oooooooooo

Kenny breathed a sigh of relief, then smiled in pride as he watched the outcome of the Grand Festival. Having been beaten in the preliminaries did not seem such a disappointment now...

oooooooooo

In the Snowpoint City gym, the atmosphere was not quite so festive, as one might imagine.

"Awww... that's such a pity..." Maylene murmured, breathing out a small cloud of steam. "I mean, not that Dawn did not deserve to win, but I was rooting for Zoey all the same..."

Candice shrugged her shoulders and smiled slightly. "Well, I guess what's done is done. At least Zoey did her best, and lost only by a little, and to a worthy opponent! And second place isn't so bad a placement, now is it?" she said, shrugging a jet-black braid from her shoulder. "Anyway, since we have already prepared a celebration for her, it would be a shame to just waste it, now wouldn't it? So... let's not look so downcast, and get ready to welcome Zoey the way she deserves!"

Maylene lightly slapped herself on her cheeks, as if to wake herself up. "You're right, Candice! Zoey wouldn't want to see us being sad!" she exclaimed. "Then... let's get to work! Our friend needs to be welcomed with all the honors!"

Candice scratched her cheek with an index finger. "Hehehee... you never seem to lack enthusiasm, right, Maylene?" the Ice Pokemon expert commented. "Anyway, you're right! We need to start now!"

oooooooooo

Even after Dawn had received her trophy, the celebrations had continued outside of the Grand Festival building, with Ash, Pikachu, Brock, Johanna and Zoey accompanying the blue-haired girl as they tied to make their way through the cheering crowd. Finally, after having spent a good ten minutes slowly advancing through the mass of people, the group was finally able to get to a quiet place, where they would not be beset by onlookers!

"Phew... boy, I almost got lost in the midst of all that crowd..." Dawn commented, brushing a lock of blue hair away from her eyes. "I barely even had time to change in my everyday clothes... Heh, guess you could say that fame has its drawbacks!"

"You can say that again..." Zoey chuckled, before clearing her throat. "Anyway, Dawn, now what do you plan to do? Knowing you, I dare say you will not stop here, right?"

"Well... that's true, Zoey, but I actually have not made up my mind just yet..." the blue-haired girl replied as she stroked her Piplup's head. "For now, anyway, I will stay with Ash and Brock, and I'll be there to root for Ash in the Sinnoh League! In fact, if I recall correctly, in a few days Ash will have his match with Volkner, and I want to give him my support."

"I see." Zoey concluded. "Well, if that is the case, I can only wish you and your friends good luck... and I hope we'll meet again in another competition soon! As for what concerns me... I will return to Snowpoint City, Candice and Maylene invited me there to celebrate my performance in the Grand Festival. After which, I will have my Pokemon get some well-deserved rest, and then continue with my training. I will take part in next year's Grand Festival... and I assure you, I will be the winner this time!"

"I'll look forward to that!" Dawn said, winking.

Zoey smiled and nodded, before turning to Ash and his Pikachu. "By the way, Ash Ketchum... I heard that Paul guy is going to be in the Pokemon League as well."

Ash and Pikachu both nodded. "Yes, that's right... last time we met him, he saw that the Chimchar he had abandoned and I have in my team now had evolved into an Infernape." the young trainer said. "Since then, he became interested in challenging me and see how I would fare in the League."

"Very well," Zoey answered. "I don't know that guy all that much, but... from what I saw, I can already tell you that I don't like him at all. Especially after that stunt he pulled on you and his Chimchar during that double duel. So... kick his butt for me as well, okay?"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu squealed in determination, both his front paws clenched into fists in front of him. Ash looked a bit surprised, but he quickly went back to his usual cheerful self, and chuckled, rubbing the back of his head.

"Hehehee... looks like Pikachu took it quite seriously!" he joked, before getting more serious. "Anyway, Zoey, don't worry about that! Me and my Pokemon have become much stronger, and we will not let Paul have the last laugh this time!"

Just then, Dawn recalled one last thing she needed to do, and reached into a pocket in her dress, extracting the Ribbon her mother had given to her for the beginning of her journey. "Oh, by the way, Mom..." she said, before handing the Ribbon back to Johanna. "This... is the Ribbon you gave me when I left home. I would like you to keep it... I think now it's time for me to make myself known for my own skill, not just because I'm your daughter."

"Are you sure, Dawn? You know that I would have no problem with it if you simply kept it..." Johanna answered, to which the newly-crowned champion gently shook her head.

"Don't worry about that, Mom, this is yours... you've earned it." the blue-haired girl answered. "I will try to find my own way, and walk on my own legs!"

Johanna accepted this and received her Ribbon back. "As you wish, honey! And... congratulations once again, I'm really proud of you!"

Brock looked at his watch, suddently realizing that evening was closing in. It was probably time for them to call it a day... and what a day! "Well, guys, it's almost seven o'clock now... what do you say we find a nice little place and have dinner all together? I've heard there's a pretty good restaurant around here, in which our Pokemon are welcome too!" he suggested.

"Sure! I was starting to get hungry anyway..." Ash answered, turning to the girls and receiving approving nods. "Okay, then! Let's go, we have to celebrate Dawn and Zoey's victory!"

The team followed after Brock, intent on giving a fitting conclusion to a memorable day...

oooooooooo

TO BE CONTINUED...

**Author's Note: And there you have it! First chapter completed! I have to say, I'm quite satisfied of how it came up, though I think I could have been more descriptive in certain scenes. That, and I felt my English was iffy in some places...**

**As you can see, I have already started with the divergences from the anime: in my story, Ambipom never randomly left Dawn to go play ping-pong, which in my opinion was a stupid excuse to take a powerhouse out of Dawn's team. And, in another jab to the anime, I actually had Dawn win against Zoey, if only barely. I mean, if May has been allowed to defeat Drew to wrap up her character arc, why shouldn't Dawn get the same treatment? Yeah, that episode was a major annoyance (to say the least) for me...**

**Oh well... I hope this chapter was entertaining enough for you, and I promise I will try to update soon - okay, it will be another retcon of an anime episode, but I feel you will like it!**

**Feel free to drop a review, and see you soon! **


	2. Ash vs Kenny

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back to my story! I hope I'm not too late in updating, and I thank you of your patience in putting up with my slow updates... but real life can be a cruel mistress, as many of my fellow authors probably already know! Anyway... this chapter is about the aftermath of Ash's battle with Volkner, and will be mostly centered on Kenny, and his moment in the spotlight. Though, I am rewriting that episode so that it is hopefully more logical than what we got in the canon series. There were quite a few things that didn't make sense, in that one...**

**Anyway, enough with my rambling! Enjoy the chapter and, if you will, review!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 2 - Ash Vs. Kenny**

"And with this... I've finally got all eight of the Sinnoh League badges!" Ash exclaimed proudly as he admired the shining medals he had accurately placed inside his badge case, as he approached Sunnyshore Town's port along with Pikachu, Dawn and Brock. Only the day before, the young boy had fought and won an hard battle with Volkner, Sunnyshore Town's Electric-themed Gym Leader, and his powerful Luxray, Electivire and Jolteon. Infernape, Torterra and Pikachu had truly proven themselves during that hard battle, and finally Ash had all the prerequisites to take part in the Sinnoh League tournament! The only thing left t do was to go to the port and embark on the first ship to the Sinnoh League, so as to sign up for the competition in time!

It was probably because they were so hyped up after Ash's victory that Ash, Pikachu, Dawn and Brock remained disappointed when, after reaching the port's reception, they found out that thelast ferry had departed a few minutes before, and that the tickets were sold out for the day, anyway...

"We're sorry... but I'm afraid you'll have to wait until tomorrow to buy a ticket and depart." the vendor had said, shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders. "At the moment, we're unable to do anything to help you... but you can come back tomorrow morning - the first cruise sets sail at 9 o'clock in the morning, and from then on, there's one every hour."

"Aww, man... and here I was pumped up..." Ash murmured, rubbing the back of his head, as Pikachu wrinkled his nose. There was not much else to do but wait, spend the night in an hotel, and wake up early to try and climb on the next day's first cruise.

"Well, there's no need to be hasty, in any case..." Brock commented. "After all, we have a safe time margin to sign up, and we have no need to rush."

Dawn nodded. "Yeah, I agree with that." she answered, smoothing over her white hat. "And then again, we can also... huh?"

She quickly stopped herself as she and her travelling companions headed out of the ticket office and came across a familiar-looking pair of people standing on the walkway near the waves, apparently busy with training their Pokemon. The first one, Dawn recognized immediately - a boy her age with a green shirt, somewhat loose beige pants and white and green trainers, his messy hair a mix of red and marroon. He was obviously Kenny, her childhood friend for Twinleaf, who had taken part in the Grand Festival like her, but had unfortunately been defeated during the preliminaries. At the moment, he was accompained by his Floatzel, a Pokemon similar to a giant otter with short orange fur, turning yelllow on his muzzle and belly. two fox-like tails, a small crest on his head... and, the most noticeable feature of all, some sort of life jacket on his shoulders.

The other trainer was a pretty girl with long, light brown hair tied in a pair of pigtails thanks to two orange orb-shaped decorations, but other than that, they were flowing freely down her back. She wore a pure white sundress, with an orange ribbon tied in front of her, and a pair of high-heeled white sandals. While she had a few more years than when Ash and Brock had seen her last time, there was no chance to mistake her for someone else - she was obviously Jasmine, the Steel-typed Johto Gym Leader! She seemed to be teaching Kenny something important, but... what exactly was she doing there, so far away from her home continent?

"Alright, Kenny... now, try to have your Floatzel repeat this same attack!" the pretty Gym Leadet told the young boy and his Pokemon. Kenny nodded and turned to his otter-like Pokemon.

"Right!" he said. "Okay, Floatzel, use a Water Gun attack... the way we've been taught!"

The Pokemon raised his head and shot an high-pressure jet of water skywards, creating a spectacular fountain of water which shot up for a few metres above the speedy Water Pokemon's head.

"Excellent! And now... do an Aqua Jet attack and pass through that!" Kenny ordered. Floatzel immediately interrupted his stream of water and jumped up, shooting into the mass of water like a living torpedo. The otter went through his own attack, tracing a few concentrc rings of water into it, and emerged with a spectacular acrobatic move, surrounded by a swarm of shimmering drops of water!

"Hmm, not bad! Not bad at all!" Jasmine commented as Floatzel elegantly landed near his trainer, his front paws held wide at his sides. "I have to admit, you two were quick to learn this little trick!"

Kenny stroked his Floatzel's head in gratitude. "Well, it was mainly thanks to you and your help, miss Jasmine!" he answered. "And by the way, thanks for the tips you've given me! I really needed them, after the poor showing I made at the Grand Festival..."

"Kenny! Fancy meeting you here!" Dawn exclaimed as she walked to her friend. A bit startled, Kenny turned to her.

"Oh... Dee-dee, is that you?" he answered, quickly regaining his composure. "Er... yeah, in fact, I kinda decided to stay here for a while to train my Pokemon... I met miss Jasmine here by mere chance, and she offered to give me a few pointers for my next contests... so I thought, why not? Going back to the basics will not hurt... by the way, Dee-dee, congratulations for winning the Grand Festival!"

The blue-haired girl smiled, halfway between pride and embarassment. "Hehee... well, I and my Pokemon simpky tried to do our best! And as I told Zoey, it was also a stroke of good luck on my part!" she answered. "And... she's miss Jasmine? I have this feeling I saw her somewhere, but I can't remember where on the top of my head..."

"She's the Olivine City Gym Leader, from the Johto continentt!" Ash explained, remembering his battle with the pretty Gym Leader. Her Steelix had been quite the dangerous opponent, even though Ash had come out on top att his first attempt. "I met her a couple years ago, when I was competing in the Johto league... and before that, I, Misty and Brock had to help a sick Ampharos. Hehee... let me tell you, it wasn't easy, we had to do a fair bit of back and forth!"

"I see..." Dawn answered. "Well, apart from this... If I'm not being too curioud, miss Jasmine, can I ask you why you're here in Sunnyshore City? And why are you with her, Kenny?"

"For now, I let my Gym to the care of my pupils." Jasmine answered. "I've come to Sinnoh to take part in a few contest, and because I was curious to see a few new places! As for Kenny, well... he was just asking me for a few pointers for his next competitions."

"I did a pretty poor showing at the Grand Festival..." the boy admitted, nervously playing with a Pokeball. "I relied too much on my Empoleon, and I lost... maybe I should have had a more varied team, and not count on power so much. Therefore, I thought it would have been a good idea to speak to a more expert coordinator."

"I see... I sure didn't know miss Jasmine was interested in coordinating." Brock commented, to which the Olivine City Gym Leader coveredher mouth with her hand and giggled shyly.

"In fact, that's quite a recent thing..." she answered. "You see, these contests are starting to get introduced in Johto too, and... let's just say, I became interested in them! It was somewhat sudden, but I have to admit I like them!"

Dawn nodded. "Glad to know... myself, truth be told, I still haven't decided what to do, now that I won the Grand Festival. For now, I wanted to stay with Ash and root for him during the Sinnoh League tournament, but after that... I still have to think about it."

"Ah... I understand." Kenny answered. Dawn and her companions missed it, but the young boy's mood had somewhat sombered when he heard that his friend wanted to stay with Ash until the end of the Sinnoh League tournament. However, he didn't have the time to reflect on that, as a huge metal claw suddently swooped down from the sky and caught his Floatzel, holding him tight and lifting him in the air! "Ah! Floatzel! What's going on?"

"_Flooooat!_" the otter Pokemon exclaimed, struggling against the vicegrip as he was raised higher and higher under the surprised eyes of Ash, Jasmine and all their friends. Quickly following the cable attached to the iron claw, the trainers saw that it was coming from a familiar air balloon, shaped like the head of a certain feline Pokemon...

"Hohohohoooo! Thanks for your Floatzel, kiddo! The boss will surely give us a bonus for this nice little gift!" the red-haired young woman in the balloon laughed. Her white midriff-baring shirt with a red R drawn upon it, her dizzying miniskirt, her knee-high black boots, and above all her oddly-combed fuxia hair were unmistakeable...

"You again, Team Rocket? Don't you EVER give up?" Ash exclaimed. Pikachu, already familiar with the standard procedure to take out the persistant criminal trio, began charging his cheeks with electricity... but his trainer stopped him by raising his hand. "Wait, Pikachu, don't do it! It's not a good idea to use Thunderbolt now, you'd end up hitting Floatzel as well!"

"_Pika?_" the electric mouse wondered... before taking a better look and seeing that, in fact, the Water-type Pokemon (a type notoriously vulnerable to Electric attacks) was too close to Team Rocket's hot air balloon. If he had attacked with a Thunderbolt, he would have hit Floatzel as well...

"Jessie! Didn't you say you were now into Coordinating contests?" Dawn exclaimed. "Have you gone back on your word?"

"Absolutely not, twerp... and by the way, I have to thank you for winning the Grand Festival, I would have been very annoyed had you lost to that scrawny redhead!" Jessie answered, her nose in the air and an index finger raised in front of her.

"Hey! Zoey is my best friend! Don't you dare talk smack about her!" an annoyed Dawn retorted.

"But still... I remain a member of Team Rocket, and as you know... crime is our job, after all!" Jessie continued.

"And since that Pikachu is too tough for us at the moment, we'll be content with this Floatzel! Let's just say... we're working our way up from here!" James continued with a jovial laugh. Immediately, everyone reached for their Pokeballs, hoping to stop the ballon before it reached a safe altitude.

"No way! Let my Floatzel go!" Kenny exclaimed.

"Unhand that Pokemon, or you'll have to deal with us!" Jasmine ordered. Nothing of this seemed to shake Team Rocket's confidence, though.

"Hmmm... can't you think of a better catch phrase that this, kiddos?" Meowth deadpanned, halfway between sarcasm and boredom. "Alright then... since you're putting it this way, let's do our thing, guys!"

"Right away, Meowth!" Jessie answered, beginning to pose for their trademark motto...

"Infernape... Flamethrower!"

Before the clumsy trio could even start with their trademark motto, a huge gout of flames came from behind Ash's group and sailed through the air with deadly accuracy, hitting the air balloon dead on and causing it to blow up in a cloud of smoke! The iron claw's grip on Floatzel relented, and the otter Pokemon could easily slip free and leap down, while the outraged and comically blackened Team Rocket was thrown away for the upteenth time since their Pikachu hunt had started!

"Aaaaargh! That's not fair! We hadn't even started!" Poor James whined, with comical streams of tears flowing from his eyes!

"If I catch the jerk who rained on our parade... we had just caught a Floatzel! Sigh... farewell, my beautiful bonus..." Jessie grumbled.

Meowth, who had long since been accustomized to such failures, sighed in resignation. "What can I say, guys, that's how things go... c'mon, let's say it another time..."

"**Team Rocket is blasting off agaaaaaain...**" they screamed in unison as they disappeared in the distance...

"_Wobbuffet!_" Jessie's absent-minded Psychic Pokemon had come out of his Pokeball just then, as Team Rocket once again became a twinkle in the skies! Floatzel, on the other hand, gracefully somersaulted in mid-air and landed on his feet near his trainer, who immediately checked on his Pokemon friend to see if he was alright... and breathed out in relief as he saw that this was indeed the case, and Floatzel gave him a thumbs-up! Ash, his comrades and Jasmine all turned in the direction from which the Flamethrower attack had come... and, just like Ash, suspected, they saw that it was the Infernape belonging to a tall, thin young man with red hair in a funny afro hairdo, wearing a form-fitting yellow shirt, baggy red trousers and a pair or leather sandals. He wasn't a new face for Ash - in fact, that was Flint, one of Sinnoh's Elite Four and Volkner's best friend. Ash had befriended the quirky Fire Pokemon expert earlier on, and Flint had given him some useful battling tips for his future battles. They had also fced each other in a Pokemon fight, which Flint had obviously won, but which had taught Ash quite a few things!

"Hey, Flint! What a surprise!" Ash exclaimed as he walked to the red-haired young man and his Infernape. "We didn't think we'd meet you again so soon!"

"Yeah, looks like it's fate that we meet so often, lately!" Flint answered, waving to the other members of the team. "By the way, Ash, congratulations on winning against Volkner! You rekindled his fighting spirit... and got your eight badge in the process!"

"You can say that again, Flint!" Ash answered, proudly showing his badge case. "And this time, I'm not letting anything stop me!"

Flint nodded, before turning to Dawn. "Oh, and before I forget... congratulations to you too, for winning the Grand Festival!" he said, winking. "It's not everyday you see a newcomer coming out on top!"

Once again, Dawn tried to downplay her own victory. "Hehee... actually, it was more out of luck than anything else... hadn't it been for that Last Resort, Zoey would have won!"

On her part, Jasmine stood back with Kenny for a while, looking at the red-headed Elite Four member with interest... then, she made her decision and stepped forward, getting his attention.

"Oh, good evening, miss..." Flint greeted the Steel-type expert as he turned to her. "Hmm... I don't think I ever saw you around here..."

"Indeed, this is my first time here in Sunnyshore City..." she answered. "Allow me to introduce myself: my name is Jasmine, and I'm Olivine City's Gym Leader, in the Johto League. I have faced a long journey to reach this continent, and I took part in several coordinating contests... you must be one of Sinnoh League's Elite Four, am I correct?"

"Correct, miss Jasmine!" Flint answered with polite confidence. "My name is Flint, and I'm ranked second among Sinnoh's Elite Four! It's an honor for me to meet a Gym Leader from another continent!"

"Likewise!" the young woman answered with a smile. "By the way, I'd like to ask you if you could give me the honor of facing me in a Pokemon battle!"

Flint nodded. "I've got no problem with that, miss Jasmine! Whenever you want, even now!" he answered, to which the Steel-type trainer gripped her hand into a fist in determination.

"If we could do battle right now, that would be ideal for me!" she answered. "Please, name the place..."

**oooooooooo**

"Well... a challenge between a Johto Gym Leader and a Sinnoh Elite Four! I think we'll have quite a bit to learn from this battle." Brock commented as he stood beside the battlefield, alongside Ash, Dawn and Kenny. The two contenders had already taken their places on the opposite sides on a small grassy field, not too far from Sunnyshore Town's port, and Flint hadn't recalled his Infernape in his Pokeball, making it clear that it was the Pokemon he had chosen for that challenge.

"Yeah... maybe I can learn a few things for the League tournament..." Ash agreed. He was watching Jasmine closely, asking himself which Pokemon she would have chosen for this battle. He well knew how strong the pretty Gym Leader's Steelix was, but maybe she would have used someone else...

"These are the rules: a one-on-one fight, direct elimination!" Flint stated. As he was the one receiving the challenge, Jasmine thought it was only fair that he name his terms. "No special rules, though... alright, with that out of the way, I think we might as well start!"

"Very well, then... Steelix, it's your turn!" Jasmine exclaimed as she threw a Pokeball, which snapped open on impact and released the Pokemon Ash expected her to use... a gigantic, scary steel snake with an overgrown lower jaw and several metal blades protruding from his massive yet sinuous body, which was covered in iron plates shiny enough to reflect the rays of the late afternoon sun! The gargantuan Steel Pokemon stood up, towering on Flint's Infernape, and roared in defiance! "_STEEEEEELIX!_"

"Woah, that's one huge Pokemon!" Dawn exclaimed as she and Kenny looked at Jasmine's champion in awe. The bue-haired girl consulted her Pokedex, pointing it to the gigantic metal snake...

"_Steelix. The Iron Snake Pokemon. Type Steel / Ground. It mostly lives underground, in high pressure and heat conditions in order to temper its armor and make it harder than any other metal. Thanks to its powerful jaws, it can easily chew rock as it burrows underground, and its eyes are adapted to low-light conditions._"

"Yeah, the same Pokemon she fought me with when we tried to claim her badge! Remember that, Pikachu? That Iron Tail of his was really something..." Ash commented, and the electric mouse could only agree. Then, thinking that watching that battle could have been useful to him as well, Ash called his own Infernape out of his Pokeball. "By the way, Infernape, what do you say? Maybe watching this fight could be useful to you too!"

"Yeah, it will come in handy when you face that jerk at the Sinnoh conference!" Dawn agreed, as Ash's Infernape appeared in front of him, nodded and exclaimed his own name.

At that moment, as they were focused on the monkey Pokemon, Ash and Dawn didn't quite catch the somewhat aggravated expression briefly flashing on Kenny's face. The young coordinator was observing the aspiring Pokemon Master and the Grand Festival winning chatting between them... and the fact that they seemed so close annoyed him for some reason. Actually, that wasn't the first time he had felt like that, but only recently had this feeling grown to the point where Kenny could no longer ignore it. He felt as if Ash was forcing him to keep his distance from Dawn, and he didn't like that at all.

The more attentive Brock, however, caught sight of Kenny's subtle change in attitude, and looked at him in perplexity. "Hmmm... you alright, Kenny? You look kind of... I don't know, absent, right now..." the Rock Pokemon expert told him. Kenny's surprised and almost angry retort to this question only confirmed his suspicions.

"Huh? I... well, no, Brock, what do you mean by that? I... er... I wasn't looking at Ash and Dee-dee!" he exclaimed in a clumsy attempt to hide his jealousy. He quickly turned to the battle and placed his hands near his mouth, like a megaphone. "C'mon, Infernape! Do your best! You can do it!"

Even someone not as observant as Brock would not have been fooled by such a weak attempt at hiding behind a facade, and Pewter City's former Gym Leader stood there fora moment, watching as Kenny began rooting for Flint's Infernape with more enthusiasm than was probably necessary...

But herewas no time to think about that, as Jasmine and Flint had just started their duel... and it was the pretty Steel-type Gym Leader to open hostilities! "Okay, Steelix, let's begin! And we'll get inthe lead with an Earthquake attack!" she exclaimed. The mighty steel serpent raised his enormous tail and tried to slam it on the ground, as to unleash a massive quake... but Flint, thanks to all his experience, had anticipated that move!

"Infernape! Leap as high as you can!" the afro-haired young man ordered, just as Steelix's tail had started on its way down! With expert timing, the fighting monkey crept down and then jumped up a split second before Steelix could hit the ground with its tail... and when the iron-clad serpent unleashed his Earthquake, causing the whole field to shake, Flint's Infernape was already several feet high in the air, completely avoiding the dangerous blow! Jasmine and the audience remained in awe for a second... they hadn't expected the Elite Four member to react so quickly and efficiently! But the Steel expert quickly regained her composure, and issued her next order.

"Brilliant! But I should expect as much from a Sinnoh Elite Four! If that is the case... Steelix, hit with an Iron Tail, now!" she exclaimed. Steelix roared again and raised his tail once again, this time bringing it down on the descending Fire / Fighting ape, in a roundabout swing.

"Quick, Infernape! Keep your guard up!" Flint countered. Before the punishing Iron Tail could strike, Infernape protected himself with his arms and legs... and when the blow actuallyconnected, the fire chimp was slammed on the ground, but managed to land on his feet and minimize damage. He took a few steps back in order to reorganize, then he quickly slid in a fighting pose again!

"Flint's Infernape has a somewhat unusual way of fighting... but I have to say, it's quite effective!" Ash said. "He dodged an Earthquake attack in a very unpredictable manner... and he managed to completely avoid a very damaging blow!"

"Yeah... and did you see the speed with which he blocked that Iron Tail?" Dawn asked. "It's true, it's not all about the moves taught to a Pokemon... it's a matter of using them well!"

Ash's Infernape, for his part, was trying to take in every single moment of the fight, whereas Kenny, from time to time, kept throwing a sideways envious glance to Ash. The more he stood there, the less he liked the way he and Dawn were close, and the fact that Ash was a good four years older than the blue-haired girl didn't seem to put him at too much ease...

Jasmine decided to keep up the pressure. "Now, Steelix! Unleash a Sandstorm on Infernape, and follow up with Crunch! Now!" the Gym Leader exclaimed. Steelix immediately began slithering in a circle at a seemingly impossible speed for a creature his size, his iron body kicking up a veritable cloud of sand and debris, which Infernape was mercilessly peppered with! However, the monkey Pokemon stood his guard, being careful to cover his eyes as necessary to be able to look in front of himself. It turned out to be a wise idea - as Steelix stopped slithering in place and threw himself at Infernape, opening his huge jaws filled with sharp square teeth!

Flint recognized that was the right moment to act! "Now! Infernape, use a Flare Blitz, maximum power!"

Flint's Infernape finally dropped his guard as a scarlet blaze surrounded his muscular body... and one instant later, he leapt in the air and dove towards Steelix, transforming himself into a miniature comet! The steel serpent had counted on his Sandstorm to blind Infernape, and now he was finding himself speeding towards his opponent, unable to either stop or defend himself! Jasmine gasped in surprise as she understood she had miscalculated...

**THWAAAAAAAK!**

"Steelix!" Jasmine called out to her Pokemon, her voice raising above the deafening noise. Steel-type Pokemon are resistant to many types, but Fire is definitely not among those... and as a result, the iron-clad snake was lifted clean off the ground and tossed several feet away, before crashing upon it with an earth-shaking thud! Steelix groaned in disappointment, and finally slumped down, his eyes turned into spirals. Despite Steelix's incredibly tough natural armor, Infernape was so much stronger than him that it barely made any difference, and Jasmine's Pokemon found itself defeated in no time.

"Well, I don't think there are doubt on who won this match..." Brock stated, an arm raised in the air to signify the end of the battle. "Steelix is unable to continue fighting. Flint and his Infernape are the winners!"

"Awesome! Now this was a spectacular battle!" Ash exclaimed. "What do you think, Infernape? I think some of the tactics we've seen now could very well complement our fighting style! It surely couldn't hurt, all things considered!"

"_INFERNAPE!_" the fire chimp replied enthusiastically. After all, if that meant giving him more of a chance to show his former trainer how strong he had become, that was the perfect way to do it!

Jasmine sighed. After all, she couldn't say she wasn't satisfied: she and Steelix had done their best, and they were up against a very strong opponent. "It's alright, Steelix, you've done a good job all the same!" the Gym Leader said, walking up to the stunned steel behemoth and stroking his head before recalling him in his Pokeball. "I think you earned your rest! By the way, Mr. Flint... thank you for your time! It was a good match, and it was a honor for me to go up against you!"

"You did a good job yourself, miss!" Flint answered, with a grin and a wink. "Your Steelix was well-trained, you earned your title of Johto Gym Leader!"

"Thanks, but this battle made it clear, to me at least, that I still have a very long way to go." Jasmine answered. "As soon as I'm back in my gym, I'll start training again, and I'll try to poish my technique... and maybe make my own team more varied!"

Flint nodded. "I understand... well, if that's the case, I offer you my best wishes, and I hope you'll get a good placement in your next competitions!"

As Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Ash's Infernape walked to the two trainers, in order to congratulate them over a job well done, Dawn moved to join them, but stopped herself when Kenny raised a hand, as if to call for her attention. "Hm? Oh, Kenny, tell me... is anything the matter?" she asked.

"Well, not much, actually..." Kenny answered, trying to man up for what he needed to say next. He didn't want her to see how nervous he actually was. "Say, Dee-dee, I've been doing some thinking... you said you're not sure what to do now that you've won the Grand Festival, right?"

Dawn blinked in confusion. "Er... yes, I did say that, and I still haven't decided..." the blue-haired girl answered. "But... why are you asing me that now, so out of the blue?"

Kenny smiled to himself. That was the right moment to tell her... "Alright then, Dee-dee, let's make an arrangement! Today, I will challenge Ash to a Pokemon battle, just like Miss Jasmine and Mr. Flint have done right now... and if I win, you'll travel with me, and we'll train together for the next Grand Festival! Are you okay with that?" he proposed.

Dawn's eyes went wide in surprise, and she found herself at a loss for words... which the overeager Kenny mistook for a definite affirmative answer! "That's perfect, then! Okay, I'm going to organize my team... and then, watch me doing my best later!" he exclaimed, as he started to march towards the Pokemon Center, leaving a speechless Dawn behind! The girl could do nothing but watch her friend merrily skip away, and now he was too far away for him to hear her...

"Wh... What? What do you..." she murmured, without being able to complete the question. Brock, for his part, was watching the younger trainers, and now he too was eyeing Kenny, and asking himself what the boy was thinking...

**oooooooooo**

Kenny kept walking rapidly for a little while, until he was back in Sunnyshore Town's port... and that was when he stopped, placing an hand on his heart and breathing in and out. He couldn't believe it... he had done it! He had actually managed to make that proposal to his dearest friend! And to think he thought he would have ended up tripping on his own words... Now, all that was left to do was winning a battle with Ash in a few hours... but that was only a matter of using strategy and sending his best Pokemon on the field! After all, no matter how much more expert he was, Ash was still a common Pokemon trainer! Defeating him shouldn't be that hard...

Immersed in his thoughts as he was, Kenny failed to notice someone following him until he was just a few feet away... and at that point, the startled young boy jumped up and quickly turned in that direction, just to see a familiar dark-skinned young man with spiky brown hair and trademark ever-shut eyes!

"Sorry, I shouldn't have startled you..." Brock apologized. "It's just that... I saw you talking with Dawn, just after the battle between Jasmine and Flint and... I asked myself what you were talking about, for you to run away like that!"

Kenny frowned suspiciously, but eventually decided that this matter wasn't worth getting defensive over. "Er... well, let's just say I made Dawn a proposal to help her take a decision..." he answered. "If... if I will manage to defeat Ash in a Pokemon battle, Dawn will keep travelling with me... and we'll train together for the next competition... I mean, the next Sinnoh Grand Festival!"

Brock could see that the young boy was was enthusiastic about his own idea, and he wasn't sure whether Dawn fully understood what this proposal was about... So, after thinking about it for a few seconds, Brock decided to go for a more direct approach.

"Hmm..." he said, rubbing his chin. "Well, I don't make it a habit to intrude in ther people's business, and I sure am no one to say anything about you and Dawn... but I'd like to ask you, are you sure it's for the best?"

Kenny frowned. "Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"Well... I can see you care a lot about your friendship with Dawn." Brock stated, not wanting to imply anything despite his own thoughts on the matter. "I mean, you two are great friends, that much is clear, and you have your passion for coordinating contests in common, too... I understand that you want to keep this bond with her. But... are you sure you aren't doing the opposite and you aren't being too imposing on Dawn? I know you have all the best intentions, but Dawn might see that as you being too intruding..."

Kenny blinked, and from his expression, it was clear that he was thinking about Brock's words, and he was finding that there was some truth to them. But a combination of pride and fear of losing his friend kept him from moving from his position... and after a few moments of silence, Brock shrugged and left with a small reccomandation.

"Anyway, it's not my place to say what is best for you two... I just wanted you to take care about that, since your friendship with Dawn is obviously something you care a lot for." he concluded. "You are the one who needs to decide about this..."

As Brock excused himself and started going back to Ash and Dawn, Kenny simply stood there with a dubious look on his face. He didn't really know what to say about how he felt right now... it was a mixture of worry, envy and annoyance. However, he was not going to be swayed from his purpouse... maybe it was a bit selfish of him, he had to admit that, but he wasn't going to let Ash put distance between him and Dawn - he wanted to rekindle his friendship with Dawn, and if this challenge was the way to do that... then so be it!

**oooooooooo**

"Ash! I'm challenging you to a Pokemon battle! Right here and now, one-on-one!"

The direct, undaunted challenge from Kenny, who was standing right in front of the aspiring Pokemon Master, caught Ash and Pikachu off guard... and Dawn, with a somewhat nonplussed expression, thought that, at the very least, her friend's courage was commendable. Brock, on the other hand, did not look surprised, although he was asking himself if Kenny really thought he could do it. Ash was a much more expert trainer than he was...

"A... A Pokemon battle? Well, what can I say... you're the last person I ever expected such a challenge from!" Ash answered, his eyes still widened. However, his confidence soon kicked back in. "Still, I have no problem with that! In any case, it will be good training for the Sinnoh conference!"

Kenny, up until then serious and unwavering, actually smiled as he took a Pokeball from his belt and opened it, letting out his strongest Pokemon. "Thanks, Ash! And now... if I may, I'd like to choose my Pokemon! And I choose... you, Empoleon!" he exclaimed. The Pokeball opened up, allowing the massive penguin to come out and materialize on the battlefield, his short wings spread out, and his armor shining in the rays of the late afternoon! Brock nodded, approving Kenny's choice. The young coordinator had rightly chosen the Pokemon he was more familar with, and his most powerful one. That could actually give Ash a run for his money...

"An Empoleon..." Ash murmured to himself, remembering all the peculiarities of the penguin Pokemon. It was a mixed Water / Steel type, meaning that there weren't too many options to fight him efficiently. Unless, of course... "Okay, Pikachu, think you can do it? This Pokemon is no one to sneeze at, you should know that..."

But the perky yellow mouse was not daunted so easily, and his lightning-shaped tail moved back and forth, to tell his trainer that he was ready to fight! "_Pikachu! Pika pika pi, pikachu!_" he exclaimed, before hopping down from Ash's shoulder and getting ready to fight Empoleon. As was his habit, Brock stood at the side of the battlefield, acting as a referee.

"That's settled, then... the battle is between Ash and Kenny, respectively with Pikachu and Empoleon!" The Rock-type trainer exclaimed. "Each contestant will only use one Pokemon... may the best win!"

Kenny seemed to have prepared himself for the end of Brock's sentence, since his first command came out almost instantaneously after! "Empoleon, open up with Aqua Jet!" the young boy ordered. The emperor penguin obeyed swiftly and shot an high-pressure stream of water which hit Pikachu with blinding speed! Pikachu lost his balance and clumsily fell to the ground, but he got up quickly, shook the water off and prepared to withstand another assault.

"Wow, Kenny really started out well!" a surprised Dawn commented. "That Aqua Jet attack was really something..."

"Indeed it was..." Brock answer, doing a quick resume of the situation. "Kenny well knew that his Empoleon could never match Pikachu's speed, so he opted for a quick and relatively strong attack, in order toget an early advantage. It has to be said, for being a coordinator, he is no slouch as a fighter as well..."

"Keep it up, Empoleon! Strike with Metal Claw!" Kenny went on, emboldened by the first strike. The penguin shrieked and attacked again, this time with the sharp claws on its legs, trying to hit Pikachu with a powerful kick! The electric mouse squeaked and barely managed to dodge sideways, as Empoleon's claws drew three parallel lines on the ground!

"Alright, then... if there is a good moment to put Flint's technique to good use, this is it! Though I need to adapt it to my style..." Ash told himself. "Pikachu! Use an Agility attack to dodge Empoleon's attacks! Now!"

"_Pika!_" his best friend answered, as Empoleon tried another Metal Claw. With an agile burst of speed, Pikachu dodged Empoleon's claws, then began running round his opponent, his already noticeable speed climbing and climbing. Kenny, knowing that his Pokemon was not such a speed demon, decided to have his Empoleon wait for Pikachu's next move, not wanting his Pokemon to drop his guard...

But then, Ash whipped out a trick the young coordinator hadn't seen coming! "And now, Pikachu... use Double Team!" he ordered, and the yellow mouse dashed forward, leaving after-images behind himself that followed him for a short while! Confused, Kenny tried to think of a possible counter-measure... but he couldn't do it on time, before the after-images leapt at his Empoleon in a perfect rendition of a Quick Attack! The penguin, unsure who was the one he had to guard against, tried to shield himself with his short wings... but all the Pikachus were simply dissipated by the wing slams, and Kenny realized too late that he had fallen for a distraction!

"Now, Pikachu! Volt Tackle!" Ash exclaimed. The cute yellow rodent, after gathering enough speed, ran towards the emperor penguin, his body wrapped in a shimmering electric aura! Like a thunderbolt, Pikachu jumped Empoleon and slammed upon him with all his strength, and this time it was Empoleon, despite his bigger size, to feel the attack and fall with a dull thud, golden sparks dancing on his armor! Pikachu somersalted and landed on his feet, in a guard position and ready for another clash!

"Emoleon!" Kenny exclaimed, sighing in relief as the emperor penguin regained his unsteady footing. As a Water Pokemon, he was weak to Electric attacks, but his solid natural armor had weathered the worst of the Volt Tackle. "That's the way, Empoleon! Now, use an Ice Beam!"

Empoleon opened his beak, creating a sphere of azure-white light in front of himself... and then shot a freezing beam of energy against Pikachu, who tried to dodge it sideways, but was still caught in the peripherical cold, and one of his paws was numbed by the cold! Ash grit his teeth... that Empoleon was a dangerous opponent and was fighting with determination... time to fall back on defensive tactics!

Before Empoleon could get his act together, Ash managed to give another order. "Okay, Pikachu, don't panic! We can still win this!" he exclaimed. "Get away from him, and don't lower your guard. We have to wait for him to do the first move!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu answered, his lighting-shaped tail slipping towards the ground, as if the yellow mouse wanted to use it as a spring. Kenny, however, was too excited by his temporary advantage to see that, and ended up making another rash mistake!

"Alright, Empoleon, we've got this!" he shouted excitedly. "Now! End this battle with an Earthquake!"

"_EOOOON!_" the emperor penguin clucked, before he jumped up and tried to dive-bomb the ground with all his considerable weight! Unfortunately for him and his trainer, that was when Ash and Pikachu knew to exploit the trick they had seen Flint use...

"Now, Pikachu! Jump!" Ash called. He barely had time to finish the phrase before Pikachu used his tail as a spring to propel himself in the air, a second before Empoleon could drop down! The penguin Pokemon slammed on the ground with all of his weight, causing a miniature earthquake that would probably have meant a major blow for Pikachu, if the yellow mouse hadn't been airborne at the moment! The unprepared Empoleon culd do nothing but watch as Pikachu sailed through the air and landed on his head... and that was the point where Kenny's confident look turned to sheer bewilderment!

"And now, Pikachu, finish it with Thunderbolt!" Ash exclaimed before Empoleon could regain his bearings. Pikachu obeyed immediately, and his cheeks sparked for a moment... before his small body unleashed a massive discharge that overwhelmed Empoleon, causing him to scream in pain and surprise. A few seconds later, Empoleon slumped down in defeat, his armor signed, his body comically smoking and Pikachu still holding on to his back. It was clear who the winner was...

"Empoleon is unable to continue. Pikachu and Ash win this battle!" Brock declared, as the yellow mouse slid down his defeated opponent's back and flashed a V-sign to his trainer.

"_Pikachu!_" he squealed, as Ash gave him a thumbs-up. For his part, Kenny remained for a few second watching his defeated champion in disbelief... but finally, he sighed in resignation and recalled Empoleon in his Pokeball.

"Don't worry, Empoleon, I know you did your best." the young boy said. Such a pity... that was his chance to travel with Dawn and rekindle his friendship with her...

Or, at least, he thought so, until Dawn, much to his surprise, walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder in a conforting gesture. The surprised boy quickly turned to his dearest friend, who was smiling warmly at him. "Dee-dee?" he asked, perplexed...

"You still did a great job, Kenny! Ash is a great trainer, and it was awesome that yu managed to give him so much trouble." the girl told him. "But... in any case, I don't think I would have travelled with you. It's not that I don't like you, mind you, but... y'see, I think my way is somewhere else for the moment. I... need to find what I want to do by myself, and I can't keep holding on to other coordinators like I did until now. I wanted to find my own way and my own style... but this doesn't mean we won't ever see each other again, you know?"

"You... you don't mean..." Kenny asked hopefully. "You mean that... we'll still see each other?"

Dawn confirmed that with a nod. "Of course we will, silly! We'll see each other at contests, for starters... and in any case, you're one of my best friends anyway! Distance changes nothing, after all... so, don't worry about that!"

Relieved by that, Kenny smiled as he looked in Dawn's eyes. "Thanks, Dee-dee! Hearing such things from you... it means a lot to me!" He had half a mind to add that it was because she was the one saying that, but he thought better of it, and decided that it wasn't the right time.

Keeping his distance from the two younger kids, Brock smiled and nodded, satisfied that they had managed to explain themselves to each other... while Ash, who had remained out of the loop until then, approached Brock to ask for clarifications. "Hey, Brock, what's this all about?" he asked. "Do you happen to know why Kenny challenged me, and why he and Dawn are now all chummy?"

"_Pikachu!_" Pikachu squeaked, confused about the whole deal himself.

"Well... it's a little difficult to explain like that..." Brock answered, his eyes still affixed on Kenny and Dawn. "Let's just say... that Kenny was afraid he and Dawn were drifting apart, and he wanted this challenge to be a way to reconnect!"

"Well, I'm not sure I fully understand, but I can see it worked!" Ash stated. "I and Pikachu have managed to practice our new strategies, and those two... well, it's in front of our eyes now! So... heh, everybody wins in the end! Right, Pikachu?"

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse answered, raising his ears in triumph!

**oooooooooo**

The next morning, the first ship for the Sinnoh League was leaving Sunnyshore Port, leaving behind all the challenges Ash and his friends had faced in that incredible journey... and taking Ash, Dawn and Brock with it! The three friends were now standing on the bridge, looking at the city disappearing in the distance...

"And that's where the last leg of our journey begins!" Ash stated, with Pikachu on his shoulder. "I can't wait to face the Sinnoh League... this will be our greatest challenge!"

"_Pika pika... pikachu!_" Pikachu squeaked twice in agreement, then clenched his small hands into fists and looked at his trainer cum best friend with renewed determination.

"And anyhow, we'll always be rooting for you!" Dawn continued with a wink. "And with two cheerleaders like us, well... how could you ever lose? I'm sure you will be the next Sinnoh League winner!"

"Thanks, Dawn... thanks, Brock!" Ash answered. "Well, then... wait for us, Sinnoh League! We're coming, and we're going to rock the house!"

"_PIKA!_" Pikachu lit up his cheeks, sprayed electric sparks around himself!

From a small bridge in Sunnyshore Port, Kenny and his Empoleon were looking, a smile on their faces, as the ship continued on its way to the horizon. Dawn was right, after all... it was only fair that each one of them went on his or her own way, without feeling forced to go anywhere. And when they met again in a competition, they would have shown each other how much better they had gotten!

And when they were a little older... why not, that would have been Kenny's chance to tell Dawn what he couldn't say now!

**oooooooooo**

TO BE CONTINUED...

**Well, there you have it! The battle between Ash and Kenny... which, hopefully, had a more satisfying conclusion than the canon one! Don't worry about Kenny, though, because he will get his chance to glory as well, and we haven't seen the last of him yet! The important thing was that he and Dawn could come clear with each other and retain their friendship. Will this friendship ever develop into something else? We'll see about that...**

**Next chapter, I'm cutting straight to the deciding battle in the Sinnoh League! I'll try to make it as awesome as possible, so... keep your seat belts fastened, because it might be a bumpy ride! For now, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and see you soon!**


	3. Sinnoh Finals, Part 1

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back, everyone! I hope you didn't have to wait too long for this new chapter... and I welcome you to my rewrite of the Sinnoh League championship! So, erase all memories of Darkrai-wielding prettyboys, and get ready for a real final battle!**

**That's right... the final battle of the Sinnoh League, in this story, will be between Ash and Paul, and I'm ignoring Takuto's existence altogether! After all, let's face it... Takuto was less of a character and more of a plot device to knock Ash out of the tournament. However, this fanfiction is not bound by time constraints or by the coming out of the new Black & White games - which, admittedly, are all kinds of awesome - so... I've got all the time in the world to write a decent final battle for the Sinnoh conference!**

**So... just sit back and enjoy the deciding battle between Ash and Paul! And leave me a review, if you can! **

**Capitolo 3 - Sinnoh Finals, Part 1**

A warm evening has just descended upon the stadium hosting the finals of the Sinnoh conference, bursting with a cheering, enthusiastic audience who couldn't wait for the two finalists to take their place on the battlefield! Dazzling neon lights painted the night sky with various hues, mingling with the light of the moon. The excitement was almost palpable, magnified by the multitude of voices coming from the stadium... and two people in particular, sitting in the front rows, couldn't wait for the moment when their friend Ash would have started his final battle with his hated rival, Paul.

The young aspiring Pokemon Master and the arrogant purple-haired trained had both managed to reach the finale of the championship, and the expectations for the battle were incredibly high, especially on Brock and Dawn's part: their friend had already been humiliated time and again by that despicable person, and both of them were hoping that, this time, Ash could be vindicated! Especially after all he had done to better himself and after all the training his Pokemon had done... it would have been only fair that their hard work could be rewarded...

Yet, the cold hard truth was that Paul, despite his arrogance and his cruel training methods, had a very varied and well-trained team... and since he only kept the strongest Pokemon in his team, Ash was certainly up against a team of six lethal opponents. This was shaping to be the most difficult battle Ash would have faced during his journey through Sinnoh... with the posssible exception of the batttle against Team Galactic, and even then, he had the advantage of having Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion herself, helping him and his friends out...

"Wow, I'm so excited I can hardly stay seated!" Dawn exclaimed, frantically shuffling her legs under her seat, her eyes affixed on the battle arena. The murmuring of the crowd was such that the blue-haired girl was having a hard time hearing her own voice, and she wasn't sure whether Brock, even though he was sitting beside of her, had heard her...

"In fact, one has to admit that Ash has come a long way since the Sinnoh League began..." the dark-skinned youngster answered. "And... I'd be lying if I said that I'm not anxious to see how this final battle will go myself. This is the moment for Ash to put everything he learned to good use, if he wants to have a chance at defeating Paul."

Dawn nodded... and, one second later, she had an idea! "Well then... why don't we let him hear our support, then?" she proposed... and one split second later, she had already inexplicably changed from her everyday clothes to her pink cheerleading dress, pom-poms in her hands! And her Buneary, who had suddenly come out of his Pokeball, had done the same thing! Brock smiled to himself, amused by Dawn and her Pokemon's attitude... but he decided that it was a good idea after all, and mentally braced himself for the deciding moment...

A few seconds later, the lights dimmed, and the audience's voices rose for an instant before falling quiet all of a sudden, waiting for the announcer to start the finals! On a large screen at one side of the stadium, the portraits of the two challengers lit up, separated by a vertical line surmounted by a Pokeball symbol: on one side, Ash, with his cheery smile and his trademark red cap; on the other, there was Paul with his perpetual frown. The announcer cleared her voice... and finally spoke, ending the unbearable wait!

"_Ladies and gentlemen... thank you ery much for the wait, and we apologize for leaving you hanging for so long!_" she exclaimed. "_I can assure you, your wait will very soon be rewarded: here, in this arena, the finals of the Sinnoh Championships are soon to take place, with the two trainers skilled and brave enough to get this far facing each other in a six-on-six battle to the finish! So... let us give a warm welcome to the brave trainers taking part in this decisive fight! At the red corner... a young rising star from the far away continent of Kanto! Ladies and gentlemen... let us welcome... Ash Ketchum!_"

"Yahoo!" Dawn exclaimed, as she and her Buneary jumped up and down waving their pom-poms! "Ash! Ash! Is our man! If he can't do it no one can!"

"_Bun - ear - y!_" the rabbit-like Pokemon squeaked. Brock just clapped his hands, as most of the audience did, as Ash, with his faithful Pikachu following in his steps, made his entrance n the arena, the spotlight immediately upon him!

"Ash! Good luck! We're all rooting for you!" Brock exclaimed from his seat. He wasn't sure Ash could hear him at that distance and with so much background noise, but it was worth a try... doubly so when, after looking around himself to make sure he hadn't been hearing things, the boy from Pallet Town turned to his lifelong friend and waved to his travelling companions. Pikachu did the same, and the audience cheered enthusiastically as the young boy and his first Pokemon reached their side of the arena and took their place there, breathing in and out to quiet their anxiety.

"This is it..." Ash told himself. "This is the moment we have been waiting for for so much time, Pikachu... we've come this far, and we can't stop now! Are you ready to do your best? I... will try to guide you guys as best as I can! This is a battle we have to win together!"

"_Pikaaaa..._" the electric mouse squeaked, before leaping down from his trainer's shoulder and getting ready for the big battle, as the announcer called for their opponent...

"_In the blue corner... a trainer of few words that has reached this far with a powerful, varied and almost invincible team!_" the woman exclaimed. Ash frowned as he understood that even the announcer was already expecting Paul to come out on top, without having seen anything... "_Let us give a warm welcome to... Paul!_"

The audience roared in triumph again as the purple-haired boy walked into the arena, never bothering to acknowledge those who cheered on him. Keeping his cold, unflappable attitude, Paul walked to his side of the arena, and he and Ash exchanged a defiant glare.

"_Will you look at their determination! It really looks like our two champions in the making will be pulling out all the stops!_" the announcer exclaimed. "_Therefore, kind audience... how about we show them some more encouragement? Let's hear it for Ash and Paul!_"

Once again, the stadium seemed to almost vibrate with clapping and cheering... but Ash and Paul didn't let the excitement distract them any. It was as if there was only the battle arena and their opponent in front of them... and finally, as the applause died down, Paul frowned slightly and spoke.

"Very well. I see you have come this far without letting anyone defeat you." the purple-haired boy said, distant and hostile. "I have to admit you are more skilled then I thought... then, it was no fluke that you managed to make that Starly and that Chimchar evolve."

"The same Starly and Chimchar you abandoned..." Ash added in resentment. "As you can see, I managed to have them reach their final evolutive stages... it was a matter of much training, patience and perseverance, but I did it."

Paul snorted, uninterested in such discussions. "Hmph. That does score you some brownie point, I'll give you that... but if you don't manage to defeat me, it will have been all for nothing. I only care about victory. The rest means nothing to me."

Ash grit his teeth. No matter how many times they met, what experiences they had been through, Paul's obsession for victory never changed. But this time, it would have been different, Ash was ready to swear it! "Alright then, Paul! If it's victory you want... then I will give you victory... mine!" he shot back, his first Pokeball redy in his hand! "This time... it won't be like our last battle!"

"_Excellent! Now that we have the right atmosphere... let us start the final battle of the Sinnoh conference!_" the announcer exclaimed enthusiastically. "_The finals are between... Ash and Paul! Let us begin!_"

"Well, well... finally, we will be able to see what this Champion in the making is capable of." Lucian said, adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose as he and his companions got ready for the final battle, wich they were about to watch from their reserved seats. Along with him, Aaron, Flint, Terrie and Cynthia herself were waiting for the last battle to begin. "Miss Camilla, you have beheld that youngster in action with your very eyes, as you fought side by side against Team Galactic. And you told us that he possesses the potential o become an outstanding trainer, possibly even a Pokemon Master. Do you believe he has made progress enough to overcome this challenge?"

Cynthia, sitting in the center of the group, smiled gently at that. "As always, Lucian, you never fail to make use of your wide vocabulary." the blonde commented. "As for the answer to your question... I think he stands a good chance of victory. Personally, it would be satisfying for me to see him come out on top... although, as Champion and Elite Four of the Sinnoh League, we need to be impartial on the matter."

Aaron nodded... then, he leant forward slightly from his seat, impatient to see how the battle would go. "Okay, the fight is about to start! Let's see how it goes!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. His Sinnoh League companions quieted down immediately, and began watching...

**oooooooooo**

"Alright then... let's get down to business You go first, Staraptor! Gotta Catch 'Em All!" Ash took out one of his Pokeballs and threw it on the battle arena... and for some reason, he once again used his old battle cry, which had been one of his trademarks at the beginning of his journey. The red-and-white ball popped open and released a large bird of prey with dark grey plumage which turned white on his front, neck and chest. A tuft of black feathers tipped in red decorated his head, and his wingspan was wider than an adult human's arm extention!

Paul smirked slightly. That was a Pokemon he knew all too well... the Staraptor he had caught and then released when it was just a Starly! What made Ash think it would have gone differently, this time?

"Such a predictable choice..." he commented, selecting his first fighter as well. "Come out, Weavile!"

A stream of red light came out of the Pokeball and solidified into a blue-black feline Pokemon with a short bright red mane around his head, two tails and razor-sharp fangs and claws, with a sly and sneaky look to his face. It was a Weavile, a fast and powerful Ice / Dark type. Now was the perfect chance to show Paul how much he had gotten better, since their last fight...

"Staraptor, start off with Agility!" Ash ordered from his side of the field.

"Don't let him get ahead, Weavile! Use Ice Punch and take that Staraptor down now!" Paul shot back. While Ice had the advantage over Flying-types, the purple-haired boy was not about to run needless risks. As far as he knew, that Staraptor could really have made a lot of progress...

The two Pokemon ran towards each other at maddening speed... and Staraptor, thanks to his keen vision, could already see the first ice crystal condensating around the feline Pokemon's clenched fist! If that blow had connected, Staraptor would have been in for some major damage...

With a sudden burst of speed, Staraptor shot forward and flew upwards just enough to dodge the direct attack, to which Weavile looked up in shock as his ice-coated paw struck nothing but air... but Staraptor himself did not come out completely unscathed, as the periferal cold created a thin layer of ice on the bird Pokemon's plumage and sent a shiver through his body!

"Take care, Staraptor!" Ash exclaimed as his Pokemon flinched slightly. Luckily, Staraptor regain his balance in midair and started flying circles around Weavile, as if he was some sort of winged shark about to close in on his prey! Weavile hisssed in irritation and stood his ground, trying to follow his movements despite the bird Pokemon's greatly increased speed. On the other hand, Paul's expression didn't change one bit. He didn't predict Staraptor would have become that skilled, but he was not the type to fret over such minor things... if Staraptor's speed had gone up, the logical thing to do was simply to use an attack that couldn't be avoided!

"Change of strategy, Weavile! Aerial Ace, now!" Paul ordered. Weavile smirked ominously and jumped up in the air, swooping down on the speeding Staraptor with all of his strength! Weavile's accuracy was perfect, and the Ice / Dark Pokemon landed exactly on Staraptor's back and struck with his lethal claws! However, Ash was not about to let the situation get worse, and he reacted readily and efficiently!

"Alright, Staraptor... use Brave Bird, and blow Weavile away!" the young boy exclaimed. Staraptor screeched in understanding and folded his wings against his body, before swooping down with all of his speed! Paul's Pokemon let out a startled gasp and was forced to let go... but even so, the bird Pokemon had gained too much speed for him to resist, and Weavile was violently tossed to the ground, breaking the pavement in the process, as Staraptor executed a spectacular maneuvre and soared back up! Paul grit his teeth, acknowledging that this match was not going to be as easy as he thought... and since Weavile despite having been able to stand up again, seemed to be quite spent, the purple-haired boy decided to recall him.

"Enough for ow, Weavile! Come back!" Paul exclaimed, calling the black weasel back in his Pokeball as Staraptor continued flying around the arena, trying to catch his breath. That Brave Bird had seriously hurt Weavile, but the recoil had had an effect on Staraptor as well...

"Your turn, Magmortar!" Paul went on as he fielded his next Pokemon... a chubby-looking monster looking like a cross between a duck and a salamander, with a yellow and red skin wreathed in flames, his legs looking small in proportion with the body, his shoulders topped with a pair of flame-like appendages, pink lips contorted in a sardonic smirk, and tube-like arms, withshort white fingers. It looked like an overgrown Magmar... and in fact, it was Magmar's newly discovered evolved form. Ash frowned, knowing that Paul's Magmortar was not an opponent to sneeze at... but if he could just handle the situation, Staraptor could still be in the lead!

"Okay... Staraptor, start off with a Wing Attack! A direct hit!" Ash instructed him, trying to make the best out of the brief time he had after his opponent's switch. Staraptor shrieked and dove towards Magmortar, who just stood his ground, knowing that such a simple attack was not enough to knock him out. From his cold and detached expression, it was easy to see that Paul was thinking along the same lines... and he would probably have been right, if only for the fact that Ash gave another order a split-second later, just as his Staraptor was a few feet away from his opponent!

"Staraptor, cancel that attack... and hit with a Mud Slap!" Ash exclaimed. Magmortar's eyes widened in surprise... and Staraptor, acting with almost dazzling speed, stopped in midair and thrust his right wing in a wide arc in front of him, causing a small mass of wet mud to splatter directly in his opponent's face! Caught off guard, the Fire-type Pokemon couldn't defend himself and was hit, staggering backwards with an indignated roar as he tried to clear the mud off his face!

"What?" Paul exclaimed, his usual stoicism forgotten for a second. "You... you canceled your Pokemon's attack at the last possible moment, so that we couldn't expect your next move? Tch... much as I hate to admit it, that was a clever move..."

"Sometimes, you just have to keep it simple to be effective!" Ash answered. "Mud Slap certainly isn't the most powerful move a Pokemon might learn, but it can't be denied that it's quite useful, if used correctly!"

In fact, Magmortar had taken quite a debilitating hit... and before he could clear out the mud from his face, Ash gave another order to his Pokemon! "And now, Staraptor... go for an Aerial Ace!"

"_STAAAAR!_" the raptor shrieked, before diving on his opponent and striking him with a quick claw-claw-wing combo! Magmortar staggered but didn't fall, and managed to raise his guard again, mentally scolding himself not to fall for that same trick again. Staraptor, as Paul and his Pokemon had predicted, attacked again with a spectacular dive... but this time, his opponent was ready to intercept and counter him!

"Use a Thunderbolt attack, Magmortar! Now!" Paul exclaimed... and this time, it was Ash's turn to remain dumbfound!

"WHAT?" he exclaimed, his jaw dropping. "When... when did he learn that?"

Magmortar smirked nastily and raised and arm, his fingers spread so that the limb resembled a real cannon... and inside of his arm, a crackling sphere of electricity appeared, which the flaming Pokemon wasted no time in shooting towards the brave Flying-type! Ash, in a desperate attempt to save his champion from a nasty hit, tried to warn him and get him to move, but Staraptor was diving down too fast to avoid the blow, and had to settle for tanking it as well as he could. The Thunderbolt struck Staraptor head on, and a powerful electrical discharge coursed painfully through his body, making his feathers stand on end and revealing his skeletal structure for a moment... then, it all ceased and the Flying-type Pokemon, still conscious but stunned, began falling to the arena's floor! Ash felt his heart skip a beat as his Pokemon continued falling... if he didn't manage to recover quickly, that first fight would have gone to Paul... and that would be very bad way to start the tournament finals!

"Staraptor!" Ash called out to his Pokemon. "Staraptor, pull yourself together! I know you can still do it! I have faith in you! Do not allow that Pokemon to defeat you... you can still win! Please, don't give it up now!"

Staraptor seemed to get a second wind by hearing those words... and his keen eyes noticed Paul's indifferent expression - his former trainer was watching him fall with absolutely no feeling about it. That made the bird pokemon's blood boil in his veins... that was the ingrate trainer who had caught him back when he was a beginning Starly, only because he was capable of using Aerial Ace... and who had later gotten rid of him just because, for some reason, he didn't live up to his standards, despite the fact that he had won the battle! No... he couldn't allow that blowhard to get away scot-free! At least, he had to defeat one of his Pokemon!

With great effort, Staraptor managed to spread his wings, stopping his own fall when he was more inches away from the ground, and finally gained back his altitude! Magmortar followed him with his eyes, keeping his haughty expression...

"I didn't expect that Staraptor to recover..." Paul admitted. "But he's on his last legs anyway. Magmortar, put an end to this with a Flamethrower!"

"Staraptor! Use Agility once again!" Ash answered. Magmortar raised his head and tried to aim at Staraptor... but just then, the mud Staraptor had splattered on him a few moments earlier made his eyes hurt, and the flaming Pokemon squinted in an attempt to drown out the burning sensation, which caused his aim to be thrown off! A huge gout of flames came out of his mouth and soared towards Staraptor... but his accuracy had been ruined, and Staraptor's Agility did the rest, allowing the Normal / Flying type to dodge the Flamethrower with a sideways acrobacy!

"Magmortar! What are you doing?" Paul exclaimed angrily. But his indignation availed him nothing: Staraptor closed the distance in a flash and assaulted Magmortar with all of his strength!

"Now, Staraptor! Use Close Combat!" Ash exclaimed.

The bird of prey shrieked and followed suit, overwhelming Magmortar with a flurry of claw and wing strikes, executed with impressive speed and power! The Flame Pokemon had been caught off guard, and had no choice but to take the attack, staggering backwards with every registered hit! The assault lasted no more than four seconds, which still looked very long to Magmortar... and just when it seemed Staraptor was done, the Flying Pokemon struck Magmortar with an head butt that floored the stunned Fire Pokemon! Staraptor spread his wings agin and took to the skies once more before Magmortar could recover... and when Ash saw that his opponent's Pokemon was about to stand again, he wasted no time ordering his Staraptor to finish it!

"And now, Staraptor... Another Aerial Ace!" Staraptor swooped down and struck Magmortar once again with his powerful wings... and this time, the weakened Fire Pokemon couldn't resist anymore and fell with a dull thud, remaining prone, with his eyes turning into spirals and his arms spread! By an incredible irony, one of Paul's strongest Pokemon had been defeated by the attack that had almost convinced the arrogant Sinnoh trainer to keep Starly in his team back when Ash had just started his journey in Sinnoh!

"_Aaaand... with a spectacular and unexpected attack, Staraptor turns the tables on Magmortar!_" the announcer cheered. "_Magmortar is no longer able to fight! Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town gets his first point!_"

A brief applause from the audience brought a smile to Ash's, Pikachu's and Staraptor's faces, as Paul recalled Magmortar in his Pokeball with an annoyed gesture.

"Hmph. You have disappointed me quite a bit, Magmortar." the violet-haired trainer commented, before placing his Pokeball back in his roster, and taking another one, of a freshly-rested Pokemon. "No matter. That Staraptor is weakened! Finish the job, Honchkrow!"

The new Pokeball let out a large raven-like Pokemon with dark blue-black feather, which turned red below his wings, a prominent tuft of white feathers on his chest, and a hat-like formation on his head - an Honchkrow, a Dark / Flying type Pokemon and the evolved form of Murkrow, not quite as agile, but definitely more powerful. Not the strongest member of Paul's team, for sure, but he did know a rather large roster of moves to handle a lot of different Pokemon types... and Staraptor was not in condition to fight much longer, so Ash rightly called him back.

"Okay, Staraptor... thanks for your help!" Ash said as he recalled the fierce bird Pokemon in his Pokeball. He gave a quick look to his Pokeballs, then he chose one and threw it on the ring. "Gliscor! Your turn now! Go!"

Now soaring to oppose Paul's Honchkrow was a weird-looking Pokemon looking like a giant purple scorpion with a pair of membranous wings, an overgrown stinger, and a thick, segmented carapace. Gliscor, one of Ash's quirkiest Pokemon, entered the battlefield with a pirouette on himself, before striking a fight pose with his claws held in front of him. "_GLISCOR!_"

Once again, Paul showed no outward surprise at Ash's choice of Pokemon. He had already seen that Pokemon, and he had a fairly good idea of what to expect from him.

"Honchkrow, let's not waste time. Attack with Drill Peck." the purple-haired trainer ordered. The raven Pokemon let out an high-pitched croak and threw itself at Gliscor, spinning on itself like a drill... but luckily, both Ash and Gliscor had seen that move coming, and they were able to counter effectively.

"Gliscor, dodge that, and strike back with X-Scissors!" the black-haired boy exclaimed. As soon as Honchkrow was at the right distance, the winged scorpion executed a spectacular midair maneuver, which caused the black bird to swiftly pass beside of him without harming him at all! However, the sheer velocity of the Drill Peck, combined with the movement of the air, was enough to throw Gliscor off his stability for a split-second, and when the Ground / Flying Pokemon turned to strike Honchkrow with his claws, his opponent had already managed to position himself at a safe distance. The X-Scissors nicked his right wing, only causing a little bit of cosmetic damage to his wing.

"You didn't think I had Honchkrow use Drill Peck just on a whim, did you?" Paul asked rhetorically, a slight smirk on his hard face. "I chose this attack because, even if your Gliscor had dodged it, it would have been difficult for him to counter. And now, Honchkrow... strike back with Shadow Ball!"

The giant crow nodded and spread his wings, then he summoned a large, black energy sphere in front of him and threw it at Gliscor, who tried to dodge... but he wasn't fast enough, and the Shadow Ball struck him on the side, causing him to lose his balance for a moment. Gliscor lost some altitude, but quickly clapped his wings to remain in mid-air...

"Alright, Gliscor, that doesn't matter! Now, get down and use a Dig attack!" Ash exclaimed, giving an order no one saw coming! Gliscor obeyed and dropped to the ground, then he used his claws to dig a hole in the ground and disappear inside of it! Paul frowned in perplexitude... what was Ash trying to gain out of that attack? He would never be able to hit an Honchkrow with a Ground-type attack, and even Paul, despite having little to no respect for Ash, didn't believe Ash was that daft...

"Huh? What's Ash doing? Has he gone crazy?" Dawn exclaimed, almost dropping her pom-poms in surprise. "A Ground-type attack is useless against a Flying-type Pokemon!"

Brock, who already had an idea of what Ash was trying to do, smiled astutely. "Don't worry, Dawn... you now Ah has a very unorthodox style of , a Dig attack can't hit Honchkrow... directly... but this doesn't mean Ash can't use it to place his Gliscor in an advantageous position!"

Back inthe battle arena, Honchkrow was looking at the ground with a confused expression, trying to figure out what his opponent was trying to do. Paul himself looked undecided on what to do, for once... had he sent out a Pokemon who knew Earthquake, he would have used that to take out Gliscor quickly, but as it was, he could only stay there and wait for Ash's next move... and Ash, for his part, was looking at the arena floor with the utmost attention, seemingly following Gliscor's movements... until he saw that his Pokemon was just in the right position!

A split-second later, Gliscor burst from the ground in a sudden explosion of speed and soared towards the surprised Honchkrow, who squeaked in astonishment and tried to gain more altitude to dodge the flying scorpion's attack... but his opponent was too fast for him!

"Now, Gliscor! Hit him with Thunder Fang!" Ash ordered! Gliscor opened his mouth wide, revealing rows of pointed teeth crackling in electricity, and chomped down on one of Honchkrow's legs, sending a painful electrical pulse in his body! The raven screeched in fury and pain, and furiously flapped his wings to escape the attack, but he could only shake Gliscor off after a few seconds of taking his Thunder Fang attack!

"Is that so? Two can play at that game, twerp." an annoyed Paul commented, resolving not to get surprised any more. "Honchkrow, use a Fly attack, and get out of his range!"

Although still stunned by the electrical shock, Honchkrow quickly took to the air and hovered above the stadium, where Gliscor was unable to follow. The flying scorpion descended, his eyes glued to the sky in order to see the next attack coming...

"Very well, Gliscor!" Ash exclaimed, getting a bit excited over his momentary advantage. "Now... stand ready, and hit Honchkrow with Giga Impact as soon as he comes down! We've got this in the bag!"

Gliscor nodded in agreement and squatted down on the floor, his eyes still trailing Honchkrow... and when he saw something shining in the sky above him, he jumped up and darted towards Honchkrow with all of his strength! Honchkrow let out a battle cry and folded his wings against his body in order to get more speed as he swooped down... and in a moment of pure tension, the two Flying-types shot towards each other...

...

...

SMAAAAAAASH!

A terrifying crash forced Ash, Dawn, Brock and even Paul to grit their teeth as Gliscor and honchkrow impacted on each other in midair! The two Pokemon remained suspended for a moment... and then, they were both knocked back from the powerful blow and started falling! Luckily, Gliscor managed to regain his altitude soon enough, stopping in midair to catch his breath after such a powerful Giga Impact; while Honchkrow, who seemed to have been hit harder, continued in his free fall. Maybe that meant Ash and his Pokemon had gained another victory?

But it turned out to only have been a hope spot - just a few feet from the ground, Honchkrow flapped his wings and took to the air again, squawking in indignation! He was not about to get humiliated by that jester, and now he wanted to pay him back for that blow! Gliscor looked at his opponent in surprise and fear, realizing he was now helpless!

"Honchkrow... Heat Wave!" Paul ordered, and the Dark / Flying Pokemon cloaked himself with his wings and then opened them wide, releasing a wave of red energy that struck Gliscor head on, lifting him up in the air some more, before dropping him on the ring, his carapace smoking and black with soot. This time, Gliscor couldn't recover in time and slammed on the floor, remaining there with his tongue lolling out and wheezing in exhaustion.

"_Gliscor is unable to battle anymore. This round goes to Paul and Honchkrow!_" the announcer's voice declared, as the crowd's clapping of hands resonatd once again. Ash grit his teeth and looked downwards. What a pity, it was so close too...

"Return, Gliscor!" he called out, as the exhausted Ground / Flying Pokemon returned to his Pokeball. "Don't be sad, my friend, I know you did your best! You've been great, now you earned yourself some rest!"

"So?" Paul called to him, as Honchkrow remained in suspension slightly above him, noisily flapping his wings. "If you're done with kissing your Pokemon goodnight, hurry up and choose another. I don't like it when I'm left hanging."

Ash hmphed in annoyance for his opponent's arrogant attitude and chose his next Pokemon. "Tch... of course I have! Go, Hearcross, it's up to you!"

Ash's Pokeball flew on the battlefield, and a large rhinoceros beetle Pokemon appeared, his blue armor gleaming under the lights of the stadium, and his large horn, about half as long as Heracross himself was tall, proudly raised up in the air! The gigantic Bug / Fighting Pokemon exclaimed his own name and raised his guard, ready to fight against Murkrow's evolved form!

Once again, Paul was somewhat surprised, but didn't let it show. Sending an Heracross against a Flying type? What kind of stupid idea was that? Even a beginner had to know that his dual type made Heracross extremely vulnerable to Flying-type attacks... so, that meant Ash had something in mind! And in any case, he knew nothing of that Pokemon. Even just that meant he had to be careful...

But Ash denied him the time to think up a strategy, and had Heracross attack immediately! "Now, Heracross, let's do it!" he exclaimed. "Attack that Honchkrow with Stone Edge, now!"

"_HERACROSS!_" the humongous beetle exclaimed, raising one of his heavy arms and bringing it down! A volly of fist-sized rocks flew up from the ground and sped towards the raven Pokemon, whose eyes immediately widened in alarm! That could have been dangerous...

"Fly again, Honchkrow!" the violet-haired trainer ordered hastily. Honchkrow managed to carry the order out just in time, spreading his wings and taking to the air, the Stone Edge just barely missing him. Then, Honchkrow started flying around, like a vulture, above the battlefield, waiting for the right moment to swoop down and hit his opponent! Such a hit would surely have taken out Heracross in a single blow...

But Ash had planned this carefully, this time. He took looked upwards to catch the right moment... and as soon as Honchkrow stopped and began dropping down, the boy from Pallet nodded and did a quick calculation, so that he could give the order at the right moment!

"Heracross... Counter!"

Paul grit his teeth in surprise and annoyance, as he reallized that he had playedd right into Ash's hands! As Honchkrow swooped down beak-first on Heracross, the large beetle extended one of his heavy limbs and grabbed him right in midair... then, Heracross vaulted Honchkrow over his shoulder and slammed him on the ground with all of his strength, using the Fly attack's own momentum against his opponent! Honchkrow squawked in pain and blacked out, laying in a fissure created by his own impact. An halo of shining stars appeared above the raven Pokemon's head as a sign that he had been defeated.

"_Aaand... once again, Ash surprises us with his strategy!_" the announcer said. "_We thought Heracross would be an easy prey to Honchkrow's Flying-type attacks... but this young trainer sure knows his stuff! As you know, Counter damages the attacker for the same amount of damage he would have otherwise inflicted upon the user. And since Heracross is extremely weak against Flying-type attacks... well, I'll let you imagine just how powerful this Counter attack was!_"

"Hey! Hold on a second! I am usually the one doing the explaining!" Brock protested, feeling like his own field of competence had been invaded!

Paul recalled Honchkrow in his Pokeball and looked at the sphere for a few seconds, as if he wanted to berate his Pokemon... but then, he thought better of it. "Hm. You did your job." he said, before sending out his next Pokemon. "Alright, then. Looks like the gloves are off. Come out, Ursaring!"

The mighty grizzly bear Pokemon materialized on the battlefield, roaring in defiance and causing Ash and Pikachu, despite everything, to briefly shiver in fear - every time Paul sent his Ursaring in battle, his opponents could only expect a savage battle! However, Heracross was well trained and well rested, and his Fighting-type moves had the advantage on the bear Pokemon's Normal-type... so, maybe, this time it wouldn't be such a one-sided battle!

"Ursaring, start with a Strength attack!" Paul ordered, without missing a beat. The fierce bear Pokemon planted his claws on the ground... and literally ripped out a chunk of the arena floor, before hoisting it above his head and throwing it against Heracross, like a boulder from a catapult! But the giant beetle was not impressed and, after slightly bending his knees, he raced towards the flying projectile, his horn glowing a strange white light...

"Heracross, use Megahorn now!" Ash ordered... and Heracross dealt a tremendous blow with his front horn, blasting the boulder into smithreens before dashing towards Ursaring and trying to hit him as well. However, the bear defended himself skillfully, parrying the blow with his mighty forearms and takking only very minor damage. Paul smirked slightly, satisfied of how he had trained his Ursaring... then, he gave another command!

"Good reaction, Ursaring. Now use Hammer Punch!" he ordered.

"Heracross! Counter with Brick Break, now!" Ash readily countered. The two Pokemon raised their arms at the same time, and Ursaring clenched his paw into a fist and brought it down on Heracross, who tried to counter with a chop to the ribs...

With a mighty crash, the two blows met in midair, luminous beams of light spreading from the impact in all directions and raising a shockwave that forced Ash to hold his hat not to have it blown away, and Pikachu to grab a steady hold on the side of the arena! Heracross and Ursaring began pushing one against the other, in an attempt to overpower the other... but for a few seconds, none of the two seemed to be about to make any progress!

"_This is unbelievable, ladies and gentlemen! These Pokemon have truly earned their right to take part in this deciding battle! Look at their power... the ring itself cannot contain their awesome might!_" the announcer commented in awe. "_And now, I think I speak for all of us when I ask myself who's going to prevail between these two juggernauts! Heracross or Ursaring? This is surely going to be a pitched battle!_"

The two contenders continued pressing one against the other for awhile... and finally, in a burst of rage, Ursaring got the upper hand, tossing Heracross backwards and causing him to stagger! The giant beetle shook his now numb arm, but he was unable to react in time before Ursaring mounted his next attack...

"Excellent, Ursaring! Now, strike with Aerial Ace!" Paul instructed him. The brown bear jumped up and discended on the unfortunate Heracross, striking him with a mighty flying claw strike before he could brace himself for a Counter! The Bug / Fighting Pokemon was lifted clean off the ground by the mighty blow and crashed on the ground a few feet away... but, much to Paul's surprise and Ash and Pikachu's relief, he managed to pick himself off the ground and wobble back on his feet... his unbelievable willpower did not allow him to give up so easily!

"C'mon, Heracross, I know you can do it!" Ash encouraged him. "Now... use a Flail attack! Quick, before he can attack again!"

The beetle, after regaining his position, nodded and charged th bear head-on, striking him inthe stomach with his mighty horn! Ursaring, finally taking some damage, doubled over in pain, which Heracross took advantage of to unleash another barrage on close-range thrusts, forcing the furious grizzly bear Pokemon to lose some ground!

"The Flail attack works best when the user is weakened." Brock said, explaining to Dawn how the attack worked. "Using Aerial Ace against Heracross was a good move on Paul's part, but it ended up backfiring since Ursaring wasn't able to bring it down in one shot."

Ursaring flinched under Heracross' relentless assault, but his fortitude and determination soon kicked in, and the colossal grizzly grabbed Heracross' horn with both hands just as the giant beetle tried another thrust. Roaring in rage, Ursaring lifted the massive bug clean off the ground, despite the latter's best efforts to free himself, and executed aquick spin on himself, then he relinquished his grab, and the momentum caused Heracross to sail towards the edge of the arena! However, Heracross managed to open his wings and float down harmlessly, and he quickly got back in position!

"Nicely done, Heracross! Now, use an Earthquake attack!" Ash instructed him. Heracross raised both his arms and brought them down, causing a miniature quake that struck Ursaring head-on... but the ferocious bear Pokemon endured the blow without much effort, and remained standing despite the ground shaking madly underneath him! Then, completely ignoring the pain from the latest attacks, he charged towards Ursaring, his claws unsheathed and his eyes red with lust for revenge! A revenge that Paul was all too eager to allow him to take...

"Ursaring, Slash!" the purple-haired boy ordered. Ursaring's razor-sharp claws struck, and this time, Heracross could not resist any more and was sent to the floor in defeat!

"_And with this... our contenders are even once again!_" the announcer said. "_Ash's Heracross was obviously strong and skilled, but Ursaring was not any less so, and in the end, his determination prevailed! We still have to hand it to Heracross for putting up a great fight, though!_"

Ash recalled Heracross in his Pokeball, and smiled in satisfaction as he looked at the sphere. "Yeah, she's right, you did great, Heracross! And you still managed to weaken that Ursaring, so from now on, things will be a little bit easier!" he told the Bug Pokemon. Then, after thinking for a little while, he decied that, in order to get the upper hand on the mighty Ursaring, he needed to pick an agile and swift Pokemon, who could dodge his attacks and answer with quick hit-and-run tactics... Sure!

"Alright... are you ready, Staraptor? It's up to you again! Go!" Ash selected his faithful bird Pokemon once again, and Staraptor appeared on the battlefield in front of Ursaring: luckily, the giant bird of prey seemed to have gotten back some of his strength since his recalling, and he spread his wings in defiance! The huge bear was not impressed though, and he glared at the Flying-type as if asking himself what such a common Pokemon was planning to do against him...

"Don't let him get his act together, Staraptor! Use Quick Attack, now!" Ash exclaimed. Staraptor obeyed without hesitation and charged Ursaring with blinding speed, pecking him in the forehead before darting away as Ursaring squinted from the annoying pain. Just as Ash thought, the damage had been very limited... but the intent was to distract Ursaring and make him lose concentration, buying Ash a few seconds!

"Ursaring! Get your act together and strike him down with a Strength attack! Now!" Paul exclaimed, figuring out what Ash was up to. It was better to take that annoying flyer down now, before he could cause too many problems... but as Staraptor turned in midair to attack again, and Ursaring raised his arm to strike him down at the right moment, Ash countered in the most effective way!

"Agility, Staraptor! Now!" The preybird Pokemon accelerated swiftly, catching the massive grizzly off guard, darted under Ursaring's descending arm and struck him in the chest with a powerful headbutt. Ursaring roared in frustration and tried to strike his opponent by random flailing with his arms... but Staraptor had accumulated too much speed now, and managed to attack again in little time! A wing slash struck Ursaring in the shoulder and caused it to flinch for a split-second, and when Ursaring turned to attack, Staraptor had already flown away! Ash smiled to himself, recognizing the right moment to deal a decisive blow!

"Now, Staraptor... end this with a..." Ash began to say, but was surprised when Paul raised his Pokeball and recalled his bear Pokemon, sparing him from a dangerous Close Combat attack.

"Come back for now, Ursaring!" Paul exclaimed. Ursaring was too strong and precious a Pokemon to risk him getting KOed like this...

Staraptor screeched in disappointment when Ursaring went back to his Pokeball. and his Close Combat only hit the air... and Paul, wasting no time, sent a Pokemon who had already seen action before. "It's your turn again, Weavile! he ordered, sending hs Ice /Dak Pokemn back on the field. In other situations, Ash and his Pokemon could have taken advantage of those few seconds to mount another attack, but Staraptor still had to recover from the failed Close Combat attack. Paul had chosen the right moment to call for a substitute...

Before Staraptor could soar again and attack Weavile, the feline Pokemon dashed forward and leapt on his opponent, his claws unsheathed, already anticipating the pleasure of putting an end to the previous battle!

"Weavile, do a Faint attack!" Paul ordered. In a flash, Weavile disappeared from Staraptor's sight, moving at such a speed that even the preybird's excellent sighting abilities could not follow him, and moved to his opponent's side, reappearing a few inches away from him! Grinning in triumph, Weavile raised his left paw, as Ash tried to at least buy a few seconds with a random attack!

"Ouch... Quick, Staraptor, Wing Attack!" the boy from Pallet exclaimed.

"Weavile, Ice Punch!" Paul shot back. Unfortunately for Staraptor, while he was obviously fast, Weavile was even more so, and the latter's fist, coated in a chilling white-blue aura, slammed into the former's body before Staraptor could slam Weavile with his wings! The bird Pokemon screeched as he was enveloped in cold energy... then, with a resigned moan, he slumped to the ground and fainted, giving Paul his third point. Weavile somersaulted through the air and landed elegantly in front of Ash, looking at him with a mocking smirk.

Ash sighed himself. Unfortunately, his strategy had not gone according to his plans, and all he could do was recall Staraptor in his Pokeball. "Well, it's okay, Staraptor. You still did a great job, though!" he commented. Since one of the two contestants had lost three Pokemon already, it was time to call for an interruption.

"_And with a brilliant and swift assault, Paul and his Weavile obtain their third win in this bout! Now, according to the rules, both contestant are allowed a five-minute break, in order to reorganize their teams and keep sharp for the remainder of the fight! So, fellow Pokemon fans... stay with us, and keep rooting for your favourites!_" the young woman said, as the trainers retreated to consider their options. At the moment, Paul was in the lead for 3 to 2, and things were beginning to look grim for the Kanto trainer, as Paul's strongest Pokemon (Ursaring, Electivire and Torterra) were still pretty much intact.

But still, Ash thought, there was somethinggoing for him as well! He, too, still hadn't used his best Pokemon, and Paul didn't know anything about one of them...

**oooooooooo**

"Oh, dear, Ash is in trouble..." Dawn murmured as her Buneary lowered her ears in disappointment. "He already lost three Pokemon, and Paul still hasn't used his strongest ones... this is looking bad! Brock, what do you think?"

The dark-skinned young man frowned, keeping his arms crossed and looking at the arena in worry. In fact, it couldn't be said that Ash was doing that well... "Hmmm... once again, Paul proves that he's no one to be taken lightly... he's got some impressive tactics, and in more than one occasion, he managed to anticipate Ash's. I'm afraid he's not in a good situation..." he said in worry, but soon after that, he raised his head and smiled lightly, trusting that Ash could prevail in this occasion! "But still... I'm confident that nothing is certain as of now! You know, 'giving up' is just not in Ash's vocabulary... I'm sure he'll find a way to counterattack, and he will gain back the advantage! Trust in him!"

"Alright, Brock!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed, grabbing her pom-poms back. "C'mon, Ash! Do your best! We're all rooting for you!"

And as the audience, after a brief round of applause to the two finalists, seated back down to wait for the next round, the tension raised to the point where Dawn and Brock felt like they were shivering...

How would the battle have ended?

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**And so ends the first part of the finals! Stay tuned, the conclusion of this climatic fight will be up soon!**


	4. Sinnoh Finals, Part 2

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Welcome to the second part of Ash' final battle with Paul, at the Sinnoh League finals! Right now, we're going to see whether Ash will manage to overcome his rival, or if he's doomed to bungle another league... I hope I did good enough in this chapter, but I'll let you be the judge on that!**

**Happy reading!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 4 - Sinnoh League Finals, Part 2**

"The twerp sure did a good job for now, didn't he?" James asked, looking at the new-empty arena, upon which the signs of the battle were still clearly visible. "He managed to give that little jerk a run for his money, and he's only one Pokmon behind him for now..."

"Yeah... Though I don't like to admit it, I have to say he's giving this all he's got." Jessie acknowledged, wrinkling her nose a little. Team Rocket, putting their roguish tendencies aside for now, was at the moment working on the stands, selling sandwiches, soft drinks and snacks in order to gain a little money... but even they couldn't help sparing the occasional glance towards the battle. They, too, were fervently hoping Ash would come out on top in the final confrontation, as they too were quite repulsed by the methods Paul used to train his Pokemon. "That Dig and Thunder Fang combination sure did a number on that Honchkrow, didn't it?"

"Ya know, guys, until now, I thought I would have been peeved had the twerp won the finals, but now, I'm finding myself rooting for the kid!" Meowth told them in his nasal voice. "Furthermore... just think of the extra reward we'll get if we bring a League Champion's Pokemons to the boss! An added value!"

"Hmmm... you know, Meowth, that makes a lot of sense! Heheheee... that would be an excellent idea!" Jessie answered, rubbing her chin with her slender fingers. "Can you imagine the bonus we'll get from the boss? That would be our moment of glory!"

"We could finally stop wandering around... we could eat in five-star restaurants every day, instead of swallowing those stuffy travel rations... and maybe I could even rebuild my bottle caps collection!" James exclaimed happily.

"Yeah... and I'll be the boss' favourite once again! Leaving that stupid Persian to eat his heart out!" Meowth said, sparkling comically with a dreamy expression in his oversized cat eyes. He quickly shook himself out of it, though. "Er... okay, guys, it's decided, then! We'll just stay here watching, for now... and in the meanwhile, we'll work out a plan to catch the twerp's Pokemon! You okay with that?"

"Of course, Meowth!" James answered, grinning practically from ear to ear, like a kid who is about to receive a new toy. "Wait for me, delicious delicacies, Jessie, James and Meowth are coming to you!"

**oooooooooo**

"Well, one has to admit, until now, this has been quite a pitched battle." Lucian commented as he sat on his seat of honour. Once again, the Psychic Pokemon expert could not resist the temptation of using formal, solemn words, which usually earned him more than a few confused stares. "Those two youngsters are giving an impressive show of their skills. Though, if I am allowed to express an opinion, Paul's methods of training I find excessively harsh. I am convinced most of you would share this opinion."

"Well, guess your right, Lucian... both of them have proven they can win this bout." Flint agreed. "I think next round will be a marvel to see... and if I know that Ash Ketchum boy as well as I think, he will show us just how powerful he and his Pokemon have become!"

Cynthia nodded calmly. "I'd be the first to be happy about that. That boy has made quite a lot of progress since we faced Team Galactic together." she confirmed, before adding something to herself, in her thoughts.

"_That Paul guy, on the other hand, has certainly improved his technique, but he still considers his Pokemon as little more than instruments to reach his goal. I am somewhat annoyed, if I have to be frank, that such a person has managed to make it to the finals... Come on, Ash, show him just what you're made of. I know you're much more than this._"

A loud whistle announcedthat the battle was about to resume, and that both finalists were being called on the arena to continue their fight! Cynthia shook herself from her thoughts and turned her full attention to the ring, anxious to see the battle reach its conclusion... and to see how Ash would have won this!

"_Alright, this is it. That's the deciding moment for Ash..._"

**oooooooooo**

"_Thank you for staying with us, and for having waited for us to continue, ladies and gentlemen_!" the announcer joyfully squealed, as both Ash and Paul returned to their respective sides of the battlefield and get ready for the next battle. The purple-haired boy's Weavile was already standing on the damaged arena floor, looking at Ash and Pikachu with a malicious grin, as if he was one-hundred per cent sure he could face anything the Kanto boy could match up against him. "_Now the two finalists are back on the battlefield... and one needs to wonder, what do they have in store for us? For now, the results speak clearly - Paul is currently in the lead, having beaten three of Ash's Pokemon, and having lost only two, but if this final match is half as unpredictable as the rest of this tournament, then I think I speak for all of us when I say that we have seen nothing yet!_"

The audience applauded again, and cheers and chants of encouragement were heard from the stand. "_Well, well... your enthusiasm is truly commendable, everyone! So, let's not dilly-dally any more... and let's start the second part of the deciding battle between Ash and Paul, for the title of Champion of the Sinnoh League! Let the battle continue, and may the best one win!_"

"Well, then ... " Ash murmured to himself as he produced his fourth Pokeball. "It's up to you, now, my friend! It's been a rather long time since we last fought together, but I'm sure you have not any of your skill! So... Go, Sceptile!"

This time, Paul's expression left space, even if only for a second, to surprise and vague concern. Sure, he had traveled through the Hoenn Pokemon as well, and he knew that continent rather well... but he had to admit to having little experience with the species of Pokemon who appeared from Ash's Pokeball, and stood in front of him and Weavile: a bipedal lizard, his skin covered with fine scales the color of the summer grass, with a long neck and two ridges on the head, yellow eyes with cat-like pupils, and a red-brown lower jaw. A band of reddish scales surrounded the reptile's stomach, like a girdle, and his long, emerald-green tail resembled nothing as much as the leaves of a fern or a palm tree. He had some strange yellow spheres growing on his back, as though they were fruits or berries, and his long arms, from which long, razor-sharp leaves protruded, ended with clawed hands. Sceptile, one of the most powerful Pokemon Ash ever hadin his team, rose in all of his considerable stature, standing on the battlefield... and then threw his head back and roared!

"_TIIIIILE!_"

An exclamation of surprise and wonder arose from the public, who shortly after exploded in another round of applause, while the somewhat puzzled Paul was trying to assess the situation. Sure, he was facing a Grass-type Pokemon, which meant that, in theory, his opponent was quite against his Weavile's Ice-type attacks... but he was too experienced a trainer not to expect Sceptile to have some kind of countermeasure against his own type weaknesses... Unfortunately, Paul had not had much experience with that particular Pokemon species, and he didn't have a very clear idea of what to do. He could only try out an attack, hoping he would be able to take down his opponent quickly enough.

"Hm... fine, then!" Paul commented, trying not to betray any indecision. "Weavile, use an Ice Punch on that Pokemon. Let's get this over with quickly!"

"Weavile!" the feline Pokemon answered, with a fierce grin. One split-second later, Weavile threw himself against Sceptile with blinding speed, his fist wrapped in an aura of bluish-white energy, apparently convinced that his type advantage would have ensured an easy victory against the Grass-type starter...

"Sceptile, use Agility!" Ash exclaimed. The mighty Grass-type reptile, who until then had simply been standing in the middle of the battle arena, as calm and stoic as an ancient samurai, moved away from his position with incredible speed, for his size... and Weavile's grin turned into a grimace when his freezing fist only struck the air in the place where the reptile was standing just a moment before! Sceptile had moved away so quickly that even Weavile could not follow his movements, and he was unprepared to defend himself when Sceptile dashed towards him and struck with a powerful Leaf Blade attack, extending the sharp leaves on his forearms and getting in three rapid slashes that staggered the cat-like Pokemon! Weavile was able to remain standing, crouching down on one knee and placing one clawed hand on the ground, while Sceptile landed behind him in an elegant fight pose, then turned around and stood on guard once again. Thanks to Weavile's Ice type, the Leaf Blade had done less damage than it usually would, but the fact that Sceptile was able to get in such a quick and unexpected attack had shaken both Weavile's and Paul's confidence - albeit the latter was better at hiding it.

However, the purple-haired boy was not the type of person to get worried for a temporary disadvantage. "Continue attacking, Weavile! Use Aerial Ace once again!" he ordered, determined not to waste time. The cat-like Pokemon let out an annnoyed meow and leapt towards Sceptile, drawing his sharp claws to deal a fatal blow...

"Use Detect, Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed, knowing that this was the only reliable way to dodge that kind of attack. The lizard extended his arm-blades and blocked Weavile's claws, which clashed upon his defense with an almost metallic sound, then shoved away the lighter Pokemon, forcing it to land on the arena with an acrobatic jump. Ash could see that, for the moment, the defensive strategy he had adopted was enough and decided to go for a little more pressure...

"Perfect, Sceptile... and now, follow it up with a Slam attack!" Ash ordered. Sceptile smirked in understanding and, once again demonstrating a much greater speed than could be expected from such a Pokemon, closed in on Weavile and spun on himself, hitting the black Pokemon with his huge leaf-like tail! Weavile cried out and was tossed on the square ... but almost immediately, he got back to his feet and, in an attempt to catch up, repeated the earlier Aerial Ace attack, and this time he managed to get through Sceptile's defenses and score a solid blow! Ash's eyes went wide open as he saw his Hoenn champion getting staggered... but fortunately, Sceptile managed to keep his footing and slid back intto a guarding position!

"Don't let him catch up with you, Weavile." Paul coldly ordered, deciding that the time was due for a change of strategy. "Attack him with Icy Wind and try to reduce his speed." The Dark / Ice typed Pokemon grinned again... then, he opened his fanged mouth and breathed out a gust of wind mixed with freezing snowflakes and ice crystals! Sceptile crossed his arms in front of himself, in an attempt to deflect the blow, but such a defense proved ineffective, as the Grass-type reptile felt his joints becoming heavy and painful as the intense cold took its toll on him. Ash grit his teeth... although reluctantly, he had to admit that Paul had chosen the ideal countermeasure! Now, it was unlikely that Sceptile's speed could keep up with Weavile's... and this meant that the young trainer from Pallet had to develop another strategy on the fly, if he wanted to defeat Paul's Pokemon...

...

Wait a minute!

Another strategy? Of course! How he had not thought of before?

"Sceptile, try to resist that attack! I know that you can do it!" Ash exclaimed, in an attempt to encourage the Grass Pokemon. Sceptile slightly turned his head towards him and nodded in assent, and kept pushing against the chilling wind, despite being covered in a thin sheet of freezing snow. Finally, Paul decided he'd had enough of that struggle, and at that point Sceptile was weakened enough that the next attack, provided it was a decent one, would have defeated him easily.

"Hmph. Again with these statements of trust and affection towards your Pokemon? These mean nothing, if you don't have the skills to back them up." Paul commented icily. "Weavile, let's wrap this up with Night Slash!"

Weavile grinned again and quickly approached Sceptile, preparing to strike him down with his claws while he seemed unable to react.

Unfortunately for Weavile, it only seemed so... and when Paul and Weavile understood they had fallen into a trap, it was too late for them to do anything about it!

"Sceptile... Focus Blast, NOW!" Ash exclaimed. Weavile's eyes widened in surprise and horror, while the Grass-type reptile drew back his hand and summoned a huge, glowing energy sphere in his palm! Before Weavile could reach him, Sceptile brought his hand forward, dissiipating the blanket of snow he was covered in, and threw the energy projectile against Weavile, striking him head-on! The Focus Blast exploded with a deafening roar and a spectacular light show that almost lit up the whole arena, as if it was broad daylight, and both the two trainers and Pikachu had to cover their eyes in order not to be dazzled! When they could finally see again, the first thing they saw was Paul's Weavile sprawled on the ground, bright stars orbiting above his head and his eyes turned into spirals! Weavile's dual type has spelled his defeat in front of a Fighting-type attack...

"_An unexpected and devastating Focus Blast! And Weavile, taken by surprise, could not react in time and was knocked out_!" exclaimed the announcer as Paul recalled his defeated Pokemon. "_Now Paul has lost three Pokemon as well... so, according to the rules of the tournament, we will take another five-minute break! Stay with us, fellow Pokemon fans_!"

"Great! Excellent job, Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed, raising a fist in the air as he congratulated the Grass type reptile, who at the moment was standing in the middle of the ring, his arms folded, enjoying his moment of glory. The audience as well was enthusiastic about the battle so far, and the ovations for both contestants were echoing throughout the whole stadium! Ash almost did not dare think about how much they would have cheered when the battle would reach its climax... but quickly shook his head and forced himself not to think about that. At the moment, the most important thing to do was to keep his concentration. This was the first time he had managed to put Paul in a corner like that, and now more than ever he had to be focused, give the right instructions to his Pokemon, and not let his enthusiasm betray him...

**oooooooooo**

In Kanto's Cerulean City Gym, the place where the Sensational Sisters' world-reknown performances took place every day, the teenaged stars were now sitting in front of the television, watching the contest between the two finalists with great interest. One of them, in particular, was fervently hoping for Ash to come out the winner in this battle...

"Hey, Daisy, what do you think?" asked one of the girls, rubbing her chin. "So far, those two have proven to have earned their place in the finals... do you think Ash has any good chance of winning?"

"Hmm ... I'm wondering about that myself, Violet ..." said the other girl, pretending to be undecided about it, and giving a knowing look at the younger, red-haired sister sitting on the couch next to her... "More to the point, it seems to me that there is someone here who is a looooot more interested than us in seeing how it goes... right, Misty, sister dear?"

Misty rolled her eyes. Damn those three, always bringing up the topic when it was the least appropriate...

"Come on, Daisy, Violet, Lily, how many times do I have to say that?" she answered in frustration. "Ash is just a friend, okay? It's only natural that I'm interested to see if he wins this stupid tournament or not! Even you would do the same thing if you had traveled with him for so long!"

Lily, the third of the Sensational Sisters, chuckled quietly, as she looked at the youngest of the four sisters with a sly smile. Misty, on the other hand, winced noticeably, understanding that she had just put herself in a corner!

"Hehehee... oooh, that's interesting to her! So, Misty, even you admit that you have a crush on him! From the way you talk about him... to how you say that you traveled with him for so long... you're too obvious, Mist, admit it!"

"Ugh.. what... what the heck does that have to do with anything?" Misty tried to protest. "Listen, girls... Okay, so I've been travelling with Ash for at least two years... and it's been almost as long since I last saw him in person... but I reiterate, we are just friends! Do not get strange ideas in your heads, now!"

"Okay, okay... we believe you for now!" Violet answered ironically, as she looked sideways at the youngest of the four sisters, who blushed and turned her face away with a funny indignant expression on her face, hoping that those three would just let things lie...

**oooooooooo**

The break had come and gone... and now, it was Paul's turned to send another Pokemon!

The two contestants seemed to be evenly matcheed, and the young purple-haired trainer knew he had to choose carefully if he wanted to tip the situation in his favor. After thinking for a moment, Paul grabbed a pokeball he had never used until then, and tossed it on the square.

"Hm ... all right! Torterra, it's up to you! Do not let me down!"

The ball snapped open on contact, and out came a red flash of light which, a moment later, solidified into a huge tortois, its thick carapace covered with moss, and a small but healthy tree growing from the top of its shell. Bone spikes protruded from the sides of his head and neck, as well as from the center of the carapace, and his feet looked like tree stumps with rocky claws. With a mighty roar, the tortoise took place in the center of the arena, as if issuing a personal challenge to Sceptile. It seemed that the idea of facing another Grass-type starter had further aroused Torterra's fighting instincts...

"_Boy, what a surprise! This will definitely be a fight to see_!" the announcer exclaimed, eager to witness this clash of titans. "_Paul has decided to use the Pokemon who more than probably was his starter, to face Ash's Hoenn starter! And both are Grass-type! I think we're allowed to expect a very pitched battle, ladies and gentlemen_!"

Even Ash and Sceptile knew that was not going to be an easy battle, and that they would need to use all means at their disposal to come out on top. The reptile-plant decided to start out with a prudent approach, slowly circling around his opponent, ready for anything, while Torterra kept his eyes fixed on him. The enormous turtle seemed to have an inkling already of his opponent's strength - and knew perfectly well that Sceptile could count on his speed, which Torterra certainly was lacking in! But even if he wasn't capable of matching his opponent's speed, there were still a lot of ways to address that...

"Torterra! Start out immediately, with a Sandstorm attack!" Paul ordered. Torterra grunted in assent and smashed his hind legs on the ground, then started digging furiously with his front legs, moving them with such speed that he set off a storm of debris, making them rain on the surprised Sceptile! The bipedal lizard tried to defend himself, raising his arms to shield his eyes, but the debris were too small and too numerous to stop them all, and Sceptile was hit several times from different directions!

"Ouch..." Brock commented as he watched Sceptile retreating under the Sandstorm atttack. "Once again, Paul played his cards well. He knew that Torterra could never be a match for Sceptile's speed, so he used this attack to hinder his opponent's movements. With all the debris flying around, Sceptile is incapable of moving as fast as he usually could... "

Dawn nodded, clenching her teeth a little. Sure, he was a creep... but one could not deny that Paul was an excellent trainer, and he had proved that more than once. "Yeah... Paul, in front of a Pokemon he was unfamiliar with, has been quick to understand what his strong and weak points were... and reacted accordingly!"

"Sceptile, try to sweep away those debris with Leaf Storm! Now!" Ash called out. Sceptile nodded as he continued to protect himself with his arms... Then, finally seeing a moment where the rain of debris was weakening, charged up for a split second, an green energy aura enveloing his body... then, he shot a huge vortex of wind mixed with leaves, which swept away the debris and forced them away from their target, then continued on its path and struck the huge land tortoise had on! Unfortunately, having blown the Sandstorm away, the Leaf Storm's power had been dampened, and thanks to his powerful natural defenses, Torterra did not suffer substantial damage, other than being forced to take a step back. For a couple of seconds, Sceptile was hit by a few stray debris, but he was able to recover quickly and got ready for the next attack, huffing a bit from the Leaf Storm having taken a toll on his strength.

Paul realized that Sceptile was temporarily weakened, and he and his Torterra immediately took advantage of that. "Great. Now, Torterra... hit him with an Earthquake attack!" exclaimed the purple-haired boy.

Torterra obeyed instantly and rose up on his hind legs, before dropping on the ground with all of his his weight, causing a small earthquake that brutally tossed Sceptile around! The lizard opened his arms, in a feeble attempt to keep his balance, but was struck by the seismic waved and fell on the ground, getting battered by more shockwaves. But Sceptile was not one to give up so easily, and Ash was able to keep his cool enough to think clearly... enough to use Paul's move against him!

"O. .. Okay, Sceptile, now just wait a second... and jump!" Ash ordered. Sceptile, hearing his trainer's voice, picked the right time to stand up... and then leapt up on the incoming seismic wave, which he used to give himself enough momentum and leap into the air, flying several meters above the arena! Stunned, Torterra looked up and saw Sceptile hovering elegantly above him, his leaf-blades extended and his eyes still filled with fighting spirit! Whatever Sceptile was going to do now, the huge tortoise was sure he would not like it...

"Perfect! And now, Sceptile... X-Scissors!"

With blinding agility, Sceptile swooped down on Torterra and delivered a powerful blow by bringing both arms forward in an X pattern! Too close and too slow to dodge the unexpected move, Torterra had no choice but to take it, and the Bug-type move sliced off a few leaves from the tree on its back and scraped away some moss from it carapace. But it took more than just that to floor Paul's mighty started, who stepped back to the edge of the battle arena, and braced itself for another attack.

"Don't give him any pause, Sceptile! Use a Screech attack and weaken its defense!" Ash ordered, and Sceptile opened his jaws and let out a shrill cry that forced the gigantic turtle to grit his teeth in slight pain... and while it was distracted, Sceptile used this opportunity to attack again! "Well done, Sceptile! And now ... a Slam attack!"

"SCEPTILE!" his Pokemon replied, closing in on his opponent. Its tail struck Torterra in the face Torterra, and Ash smiled as he saw the giant turtle beginning to weaken! A few of these attacks, and it would go down...

But Paul remained almost unnaturally calm, confirming to anyone close enough to see his face that he had already thought of something to regain his ground...

Another Slam attack almost forced Torterra out of the arena, and Sceptile closed in again, with a cocksure grin, to deal what he hoped would have been a decisive blow... but he stopped in sudden alarm when the giant tortoise looked up again, clearly showing that he had not lost an ounce of his determination! A green aura flared up around the Grass / Ground Pokemon's huge body, and a few leaves of pure green light orbited around him...

"I'm afraid Ash has only been playing right in Paul's hands..." Brock commented, having already an idea of what the green light around Torterra was. "Just like many starters, Torterra can use his Overgrow ability when in a pinch, powering up his Grass-type moves. I would not be surprised if Paul had simply let Torterra take a few attacks, so that this ability would activate and he would be allowed to deal more powerful blows!"

"Oh, no... that means Ash and Sceptile are in trouble now..." Dawn exclaimed. The giant turtle and his trained wasted no time in proving her right!

"You used quite a smart strategy, I have to admit." Paul commented to an alarmed and amazed Ash. "But your mistake was to assume that my Torterra could have been brought down this easily. And now, you pay the price for that... Torterra, use a Plant Frenzy attack!"

The giant turtle raised his head and roared in triumph, before summoning a swarm of vines, covered in leaves and thorns, from the ground itself! Sceptile found itself right in the middle of this explosive overgrowth, and he was lifted up in the air by a few vines, unable to do anything to defend himself, before getting battered around by the mighty Grass attack! With a short cry of disappointment, the lizard-like Pokemon was lifted up by a stray vine, and then grabbed by his wrists and ankles by those grassy tentacles... and finally, with a quick and brutl jerking, he was slammed on the arena floor! A large cloud of dust was kicke up from the place where Sceptile had fallen, with Ash gritting his teeth in sympathy pain... and when the dust cleared up, both trainers could see that Sceptile had collapsed and could not keep fighting.

"_Another spectacular comeback from Paul! His Torterra appeared to be introuble... but after letting himself get hit with Sceptile's attacks, lulling him into a false sense of security, he reacted with a powerful Frenzy Plant that knocked out the Sinnoh starter! And with that, Paul scores his fourth point, and Ash is don to just two Pokemon!_" the announcer's comment was heard. "_Will the young trainer from Pallet be able to get his game back on?_"

Ash thought carefully about his remaining choices... and decided that he had nothing to lose in sending out his best friend, as Torterra had taken quite a bit of damage from Sceptile's attacks. "Right then... Pikachu, are you up to this challenge?"

"Pika pika!" the electric mouse answered, climbing on the battle arena and facing Torterra. The giant tortoise frowned in uncertainty... in theory, that Pikachu would not be a dangerous opponent for him... but since Torterra had already taken quite a bit of damage in the previous battle, the outcome was not as clear as it should have been...

Even Paul seemed to uderstand that, and recalled his starter. "That's enough for now, Torterra." he staed. "I'll have you fight again later on. Now, Electivire... it's your turn!"

The last of Paul's Pokeballs opened up, revealing a rather large humanoid Pokemon with a wild yellow-and-black fur, a strange plug-like pattern on its back, and two tails which looked like electrodes. His hands were big and strong, with powerful muscles and short fingers, and his body was wrapped in a crackling aura of electricity! It was Electivire, one of Paul's strongest Pokemon, which the purple-haired trained had already used a few days earlier to defeat Barry. Having already seen an Electivire in action in his battle against Volkner, he knew that it was a very strong and versatile Electric Pokemon, which commanded respect...

"Electivire. Start out with a Barrier." Paul ordered. The Electric Pokemon raised his hands in front of him and created an invisible energy shield, prviding himself with a barrier against later attacks. Ash already saw that it was shaping up to be an hard battle... using Pikachu's Electric attacks against Electivire would have been completely pointless, and he and Pikachu needed to find a way around the Barrier, before the fulgorating Pokemon became too dangerous...

"Don't let this get you down, Pikachu!" the young trainer from Pallet exclaimed. "Let's try out a Swift attack!"

"PIKA!" the yellow mouse squeaked, jumping into the air and releasing a volley of shining stars against Electivire! The weak but accurate attack got through Electivire's invisible protection, striking him and causing some damage... but it was too weak an attack to really impair Electabuzz's evolved form, which quickly recovered and angrily launched himself at Pikachu!

"Strike him own with Brick Break, Electivire!" Paul ordered. Before his sentence had even been completed, the purple-haired trainer saw his Pokemon raise an hand to deliver a powerful karate strike to Pikachu, who luckily reacted on time and jumped back! The Brick Break fell on the arena floor, crushing a few bricks and causing pieces of concrete to fly in all directions... and before Electivire could recover from the missed blow, Pikachu dashed in and struck directly!

"Pikachu! Slam attack, now!" Ash exclaimed, as his best friend delivered a powerful flying kick to Electivire, which however did little more than annoy the larger Electric Pokemon. However, Paul quickly caught on to Ash's strategy, and tried to counter it as best as he could.

"Don't let that Pikachu buy too much time, Electivire! That's exactly what he wants!" Paul called out. "Knock him out with Fire Punch, now!"

"VIRE!" Electivire answered as he reared his right fist back. With a sinister sound, the raised limb was lit up in a nimbus of scarlet flames, and Electivire brought it down on Pikachu, who just barely managed to avoid the worst of it, but squealed in pain as the fire burned his tail. The electric mouse rolled away and put some distance between him and his opponent, but Electivire quickly caught up and prepared to strike again with his burning fist!

"Pikachu, quick! Use Reflect and stop that blow!" Ash ordered. Once again, Pikachu squeaked in assent before creating an invisible wall around himself. Electivire's Fire Punch clashed harmlessly on the forcefield, and the larger Electric Pokemon took a step backwards in annoyance, before trying again. This time, Pikachu's protection barely held, and the electric mouse was feeling his tail smart from the previous burn.

However, Paul was not the kindof person to let up that easily... and, in fact, he decided that the time had come for the gloves to come off! "You know what to do about this, right, Electivire? Destroy his protection with Brick Break!" he ordered. Electivire raised his limb again and brought it down, smashing Pikachu's protection and sending the electric mouse tumbling on the ground! Luckily Pikachu had not been hit directly, but Ash well knew that he would not get another chance, and he knew what Paul would have followed up with... this was the right time to pull off the strategy that had defeated Kenny's Empoleon!

"Pikachu, now!" Ash said, trying to convey his order to his best friend and to cover up his intentions from Paul at the same time. Luckily, the electric rodent caught on immediately and planted his lightning-shaped tail on the ground, clenching his teeth as his burn smarted again.. However, Pikachu tried to hide his disconfort... at the moment, his only real chance of winning was to catch Electivire off guard, without allowing him to suspect Pikachu had that countermeasure ready...

"Electivire... Earthquake!" Paul exclaimed, trying to put an end to the battle with that last blow. Electivire smirked, raised both hands up, and brought them both down on the floor... but before the hit could register, Pikachu used his tail as a spring and leapt up, causing the Earthquake attack to pass harmlessly under him. Paul frowned, not entirely caught by surprise by Pikachu's rection, as the electric mouse somersaulted through the air and got ready to drop down on his opponent. Electivire stood up again, and got ready to attack Pikachu at the moment of his descent. At that point, Ash could reasonably be expected to have Pikachu use an Iron Tail attack, which Paul wel knew how to counter...

That's why what Pikachu did a moment later caught him completely off guard!

"Pikachu... use Thunder Wave!" Ash called out. With a slight smirk, Pikachu charged up his cheeks and launched a swift electrical discharge against his opponent, hitting him head-on! The startled Electivire jumped up when the Thunder Wave struck him, locking him in place! His ability to absord Electric-type attacks was useless against a status-changing move...

Paul briefly showed an expression of anger an disbelief as his Electivire staggered and remain paralyzed... and Pikachu, admirably shrugging his tail burn off, kept on attacking, with Ash encouraging him all the way!

"Way to go, Pikachu! Keep it up with a Swift attack!". The electric mouse unleashed another volley of luminous stars against his opponent, who could do nothing but take all the hits. Then, Pikachu landed on all fours, his tail kept high as not to touch the ground and further disturb his wound, and dashed forward again!

"And now, Pikachu... Agility again! Show him what you're made of!" At that, Pikachu accelerated towards the stunned Electivire, getting faster and faster with every step he took. He was obviously building up to a very powerful attack, and Paul knew he had to stop him before it got too dangerous...

"This wasn't part of the plan... Electivire, try another Earthquake! Take out that Pikachu now!" the purple-haired boy ordered. Electivire grit his teeth and tried to raise both arms in the air, despite his joints screaming at him as he did so, but he was unable to react in time, and Pikachu reached him one second later and struck true!

"Now, Pikachu! A Slam attack, with all of your strength!" Ash exclaimed. Pikachu squeaked in determination and struck his opponent with all of his strength, turning into a veritable yellow bullet! The weakened Electivire was unable to take the full brunt of the blow, and was tossed to the ground, making a feeble attempt at getting up again before finally giving up and fainting.

"_Electivire is unable to continue fighting! With a spectacular combination of agility and strategy, Ash and Pikachu gain their fourth victory in this battle!_" the announcer exulted. "_Ladies and gentlemen, we are really being witnesses to an high-level competition! Just when victory seems to be about to smile upon one of our contenders, the other manages to gain the upper hand back! And now, they're perfectly even once again!_"

Paul shook his head and recalled Electivire in his Pokeball. For a second, he looked at the sphere as if he was about to criticize Electivire for his loss... but one second later, he seemed to think better of it and shrugged it off, before sending one of his last two Pokemon back on the field. "Alright... Ursaring, your turn again!"

The large grizzly bear roared as he appeared on the battlefield, but Ash was not daunted in the least this time. He was fairly sure he was in the lead now... after all, Ursaring had already spent quite a bit of his strength in the previous battles with Heracross and Staraptor, and was now unable to fight at full power. Ash just needed to have Pikachu stay away, avoid the Earthquake attack, and take care not to paralyze Ursaring, in order to avoid his Guts ability's effect... and Ash well knew how to do that!

"Okay, Pikachu! This time, we're getting ahead! But first I need to ask you... can you keep fighting?" Ash asked his best friend, worried for his tail burn. However, the electric yellow rodent did not seem too bothered with his own injury, and moved his tail as if to say it was alright. Ash nodded in understanding and signaled for Pikachu to stand ready. "Alright, then, Pikachu... start it off with Thunderbolt!"

"Ursaring, counter with Slash!" Paul ordered, not caring about Ursaring getting exposed to Pikachu's Thunderbolt attack. Even Ursaring did not seem to mind taking the hit, and charged head-on with a deafening roar, as Pikachu's cheeks crakled with electricity! As was probably obvious, Pikachu managed to attack first, unleashing a brilliant discharge of electricity on the raging grizzly... who, astonishingly enough, did not even bother trying to dodge the attack and was struck! Ursaring grit his teeth for a second and took a step back... but he continued his charge one second later, pushing against the streaming electricity with all his considerable strength! Pikach interrupted his attack and squeaked in disbelief as Ursaring quickly came up close and personal, sweeping the air with his enormous clawed arm!

One second later, Pikachu was struck by Ursaring's Slash attack and was knocked down, bouncing a couple times from the mighty blow, but he quickly picked himself up and shook the dizziness away. Ursaring groaned in annoyance as Pikachu's Static ability inflicted the same status change on him as Electivire, one moment earlier... but this tie, Ash knew that it wasn't good news for him! Thanks to his Guts ability, as long as Ursaring could fight, a status change was not such a bad thing...

"This was the last thing Ash needed..." Brock commented. "Paul knew that Ash would never have used a status-changing move against Ursaring, knowing of his Guts ability... so, he had Ursaring attack directly, to take advantage of Pikachu's Static. Now, it's Ash who is in a bad position, as Ursaring's attacking power was greatly augmented by this."

"Yeah, and he only has Pikachu and Infernape left..." Dawn murmured. "And Pikachu isn't exactly in the best conditions..."

"Let's not waste any more time, Ursaring. Use Stone Edge, and let's wrap this up." Paul called out. The berserked grizzly lifted one of his mighty arms, despite being slowed down by his paralysis, and slashed the air in front of him! The simple movement of the air caused an hail of small, yet incredibly fast rocks to be lifted from the floor and to rain upon Pikachu, who could do nothing to dodge them. The small electric rodent was struck by the powerful attack, lifted up in the air, and slammed down in front of Ash, and this time, he was unable to get up in time.

"_Ursaring looks unstoppable... and even Pikachu gets knocked out!_" the announcre once again commented, as Ash bent down to pick up his friend. "_And now... Ash is down to just one Pokemon! Will he be able to surprise us once again, or is this the extent of his skills? This has been such an unpredictable battle that I'm sure we'll see a few more surprises towards the end!_"

"You still did a good job, Pikachu..." Ash murmured as he picked up his best friend and gently laid him beside him. At the other side of the arena, Paul was not feeling as victorious as he should have felt by now... he was, instead, feeling somewhat unnerved and alarmed by the way in which Ash had managed to take out most of his team! And here Paul thought he was a weak and indecisive trainer who spoiled his Pokemon... instead, now Ash was doing what Paul was almost afraid he would do... he was proving Reggie right!

Paul mentally shook his head. That was not the right moment to stop and think of that. He needed to concentrate on winning. He would not be a loser like his brother... he would surpass him, and become the Sinnoh champion! He would not be defeated by someone who spoiled his Pokemon like that!

"Now just think of resting... I'll take care of everything else! Alright... this is the decisive moment! Infernape... I kept you in reserve just for this moment! And I hope that, together, we'll manage to pull this off! Go! GOTTA CATCH 'EM ALL!"

Ash's last Pokeball flew, opened up on contact with the ground, and let out the powerful Fire/Fighting monkey, who immediately spread his arms and let out a mighty war cry, and scarlet flames sprayed out of his fur! The audience remained in awe of that majestic entrance, and even Paul had to admit that the runt he had abandoned, believing him to be useless, had turned out to be quite impressive under Ash's tutorship. However, Paul cared little about first impressions... what really counted was whether or not Infernape could back up his bravado!

"Hm. So, not only did you manage to make that runt evolve to his strongest form, but you even managed to make him into a Pokemon worthy of this competition. Admittedly, I have to take back what I first said about you. You are a capable trainer, after all." he admitted. "But just like I said, the only thing that counts in my book is victory, so... let's see if you can defeat me with just that one Pokemon."

"You can bet on that!" Ash countered. "Let's start this with a good Mach Punch, Infernape!"

The fighting monkey shot forward with such speed that he seemed to disappear from sight for a split second, and struck the unprepared Ursaring with a fierce punch to the jaw, sending the huge grizzly bear tumbling with a dull thud! Paul took a step backwards, startled by the sudden and powerful attack, but he didn't let himself get intimidated - Ursaring, once again showing his prodigious stamina, stood up again, rubbing his jaw, and glared at Infernape, who simply stood his ground and defiantly motioned at the bear Pokemon to come at him!

Ursaring responded by rearing back and bellowing in rage as he got ready to counterattack! The final part of the challenge had just begun... and Paul showed that he was not willing to make this easy at all on Ash! "Fine, then... this just means we'll have to hold nothing back!" he exclaimed. "Ursaring, go for a Hammer Punch!"

"Infernape, Thunder Punch!" Ash countered, as the two mighty Pokemon rushed towards one another, their fists raised and ready to strike! A crackling aura of electricity sparked around Infernape's clenched fist, and the two blows collided in midair with a wince-inducing crash! Both fighters flinched ever so slightly, but they seemed to be pretty much equal, at least for the moment, and none could gain a distinct advantage over the other - they both were doing their best to push against one another, trying to force their opponent on his knees. Infernape was obviously well-rested and full of energy, but Ursaring's Guts ability and his own determination were allowing him to hold his own, at least for now. For several seconds, the monkey and the bear offered the audience a spectacular exhibition of both technique and brute strength... but Ash quickly saw that he would have gotten nowhere like that, and that this was the time to change his strategy...

"Okay, Infernape! Let's put what Flint taught us to good use!" Ash exclaimed. "Break the contrast, now!"

With a skilled dodge, Infernape broke away from Ursaring and then grabbed the bear's arm and pulled, using the massive grizzly's incredible strength against him! Ursaring could do nothing but grunt in disbelief as his opponent caused him to lose his footing and slam face first on the arena floor, causing an indentation! As Ursaring tried to pick himself up, Infernape scored another Mach Punch on him and made him reel... but the bear, in a furious rage, stood up and retreated slightly, trying to get a moment's respite. Paul, on the other hands, wasted no time and gave another order, trying to end the challenge as quickly as he could.

"Ursaring, strike back with a Strength attack!" the purple-haired boy ordered... and the bear Pokemon crouched low on the ground, and then rushed shoulder-first at Infernape, striking the flaming monkey square in the chest and sending it to the floor. Infernape stood up again with a backwards somersault, his fur standing up on end on his back and shoulders, as Ursaring lunged again... but this time, Infernape was prepared and managed to sidestep the attack, causing the grizzly Pokemon to pass harmlessly beside him... and to remain defenseless for just a second, more than enough for Ash and Infernape to take advantage of it!

"Now, Infernape! Flamethrower!" Ash exclaimed. A split second later, Ursaring was struck by a roaring gout of red flames that caused him to fall to the ground! However, showing his incredible willpower once again, Ursaring managed to pick himself up again and turned around to face his opponent...

Even so, it was clear that the massive bear Pokemon was beginning to tire out. Since the battle had started, Ursaring had absorbed a lot of hits, and there was only so much his Guts ability could do to dampen the effects of his paralysis... even a Pokemon as resistant as he was could only take so much before fainting...

Even Paul understood that one of his strongest Pokemon was on his last legs, and that he needed to take countermeasures as soon as possible. He was still leading, but if things kept up this way, he wouldn't be for long.

"Ursaring, attack with an Aerial Ace! Now!" he exclaimed, beginning to feel frustrated. The grizzly Pokemon gathered all of his strength, lunged forward and jumped, executing a ferocious downward slash with his claws, which Infernape could only try to block as well as he could! The fighting monkey flinched, which gave his opponent all the time he needed to mount another attack...

"Infernape, be careful!" Ash warned, as he saw Ursaring raise his arms again. "He's about to use one of his strongest attacks! Try to dodge it!"

"Ursaring... Hammer Punch, again!" Paul ordered. The bear Pokemon joined his hands above his head, and then brought them down in order to score a mightly blow... but luckily, Infernape managed to react in time, and dodged the attack. The Hammer Punch struck the arena floor, cracking another section of it, as Infernape backflipped away from Ursaring, who roared in frustration and began giving chase... but as soon as the Fire / Fighting Pokemon was at the border of the arena, he stopped, and then dashed forward at an order from Ash!

"Another Mach Punch, Infernape! C'mon, we can do this!" the boy exclaimed. Infernape dashed forward and struck Ursaring with another punch, this time to the chest, and caused him to flinch among vast cheering from the crowd! Paul grit his teeth in annoyance, but wasted no time and tried to counter.

"Hit him with Slash, Ursaring!" the purple-haired boy shouted. The grizzly bear was all too eager to obey, and a mighty claw swipe sent Infernape tumbling to the floor before he could get away. The flaming monkey rolled on the ground and stopped face down on the floor... but all of a sudden, his body disappeared in a puff of smoke, only leaving a wooden stump in his place, and leaving both Ursaring and Paul in disbelief! The fire monkey had used a Substitute without his opponents' notice... and what Ursaring had struck was nothing more than a copy! Which meant that the original could reappear anywhere, anytime!

"What?" Paul exclaimed in genuine alarm. "He used a Substitute... I did not expect this at all! Where did he go?"

Ash smiled to himself, proud of having finally caught his rival off guard, just when he seemed to believe himself capable of predicting his every move! And now.. now was the right moment to take out Ursaring once and for all! "Excellent! And now, Infernape... end this battle with Close Combat!"

Ursaring rapidly turned around when another puff of smoke came up from his right... but it was too late for him to react, as Infernape came upon him with a flurry of fists and feet which struck the mighty bear with lethal precision, every hit causing Ursaring to feel like a punching bag! For several seconds, Ursaring could do nothing but take every hit, ending in a vicious uppercut to the jaw which sent the huge bear flying for a short distance... and finally, Ursaring ended up crashing on the floor with a terrifying sound of smashed concrete! He tried to get up a second later... but this time, the exhaustion of the fight proved too much for him, and he collapsed, his tongue lolling out of his opened jaws!

"_And after this barrage of terrific hits... Ursaring is knocked out! Infernape wins this bout!_" As always, the announcer's words caused a veritable storm of applauses and cheers for the fighting monkey's skill! Even Ash was unable to resist the temptation and raised his fist in the air in triumph! Taking a hint from Flint's technique had been worth it, after all!

"Yeaaah! Great! You did it, Infernape! You defeated Ursaring!" the young boy from Pallet exclaimed. His Pokemon turned to him in return, and exulted while raising his fists in the air! He was finally getting his sweet revenge on the trainer who had mistreated him in the past, and was making his new trainer proud of him!

"Hm. Not half bad. But I'd wait before cheering, because I still have one Pokemon." Paul interrupted them. He recalled Ursaring in his Pokeball, and nodded at him, considering his performance satisfactory. Then, he produced his last Pokeball and sent out his starter Pokemon! "We can still win this! Go, Torterra!"

The last Pokeball snapped open, and the colossal terrapin appeared on the arena once again. However, Ash knew that, this time, the odds were leaning towards him! That was the last of Paul's Pokemon, and he had a type disadvantage towards Infernape. All he needed to do was to score a few decent hits, and that would be it! With a joyous smile, Ash gave Infernape the next command...

"Perfect, Infernape! Hit him with a Flamethrower!" he exclaimed. The fighting monkey took a deep breath and shot a huge stream of fire out of his mouth, which seemed to be about to strike down the huge tortoise... but once again, just as Ash was beginning to think he had won, Paul and Torterra caught everybody off guard once again!

"Torterra... Earth Power!" Paul ordered. Torterra concentrated hard, his paws planted on the floor and his eyes closed... and a split second later, the earth itself seemed to boil around Torterra, as small explosions went up in rapid succession around Infernape, throwing the warrior monkey off balance, and caused his Flamethrower attack to go completely off course, soaring up and towards the starry sky above the stadium! A spectacular display of red, yellow and orange hues decorated the sky for a few moments, giving a more spectacular feel to the scenario... but in the end, Ash had not managed to make any leeway in defeating his oppont, who, on the other hand, was taking advantage of Infernape's surprise to get another solid hit in!

"Good! And now, Torterra... use Earthquake!" Paul ordered, his normally stoic expression substituted by a victorious grin as his starter rose up on his hind legs again... and then violently dropped down, hitting the hapless Infernape with another super-effective attack! Ash drew his breath is fear and worry as his strongest Pokemon was hit by the shockwave and tossed to the ground with a slight shriek of pain! He fell and remained motionless for a second... but thankfully, he managed to pick himself up, even though he was weakened and staggering. Another solid hit in, and Infernape would have been defeated, giving Paul the final victory in the tournament just when Ash seemed to be one step away from victory! And yet... no, it could not end this way! Ash and Infernape had done too much, together, and had faced too many challenges to give up just then! There had to be some way to subvert things...

"Hey, Infernape! Are... are you still okay?" Ash asked, looking at his champion as he slowly regained his composure, his fists clenched at his sides and his eyes downcast... and a second later, as if to answer Ash's question, a large red flame engulfed Infernape's body, and his eyes lit up with a terrifying red hue as Infernape turned to his trainer and nodded in assent! Ash had never seen Infernape so incredibly determined...

"Infernape activated his Blaze ability... and I can see he's got it under control, this time!" Brock commented from the audience, expertly hiding his anxiety. "This is it, the next attack will also be the last. It's either win or lose for Ash."

"Come on, Ash, keep it up!" Lucinda shouted as she and Buneary waved their pom-poms in the air. "Come on, Infernape! You have to win this!"

**oooooooooo**

In front of a small TV in Cerulean City's Gym, the three Sensational Sisters and their younger sibling drew their breath in, as if fearing that the slightest noise would ruin the tension of the moment... and Misty prayed to herself that Ash and his Infernape could get through this!

In a small house in Pallet Town, Mrs. Delia Ketchum and her friend Mimy, the Mr. Mime who acted as the Ketchum's house butler and cleaner, were staring at their TV screen, holding their breaths in apprehension...

And a few blocks away from there, in Professor Samuel Oak's laboratory, the old Pokemon researcher and his grandson Gary were watching the battle as well, silently rooting for Ash...

**oooooooooo**

Cynthia nodded severely and narrowed her eyes, not wanting to lose even a split second of those decisive moments. She had rarely witnessed such an hard-fought battle, even for the standards of a Sinnoh tournament final match... and judging from the focused expression on the Elite Four's faces, the same was true for them...

**oooooooooo**

Paul frowned as he recognized the ability he had more than once tried to get Chimchar touse, without success. And now, under that loser Ash, he was able to use it and control it fully? Really, Paul did not expect such a result, and he definitely didn't expect that Ash, whom he always refused to consider a worthy opponent, could become so capable and skillful. Despite his outward stoicism, Paul felt surprised, annoyed and alarmed at the same time...

That naive fool that loved to run his mouth off about caring for your Pokemon and respecting your opponents had managed to get him in a corner. And that Infernape, even though he took more time than Paul thought acceptable, had become really strong, instead of remaining weak and pitiful as he thought. But... if Ash thought he had this in the bag, he was in for a serious disappointment!

"Let's wrap this up, Torterra. Strike him down with Leaf Storm!" Paul exclaimed. The giant tortoise took a deep breath, concentrating as hard as he could as streams of emerald energy zoomed towards him - especially the tree on top of his shell. Ash was quite alarmed by this. While Leaf Storm was obviously not that powerful against a Fire-type Pokemon, Infernape was weakened enough that even that could have spelled defeat for him... he had to gamble it all on this last move, and take out Torterra once and for all!

"It's now or never..." he muttered to himself. "Infernape, we're going for broke! Use your Flare Blitz attack, now!"

Infernape spread his arms, roaring in defiance as the scarlet flame blazing all around him expanded, spraying fire in every direction! Just as Torterra's Leaf Storm was about to go off, Infernape dashed against the giant turtle like a firey comet, leaving twin trails of fire behind him! The two Pokemon quickly got close, eyeing each other with determination... and then Torterra fired his attack, creating a vortex of shining green leaves that speeded towards the Fire-type Pokemon... who, in turn, concentrated even harder and intensified his flames even more as the two attacks collided, knowing that he could not afford any mistake now! A red and green flash illuminated the stadium once more, as Infernape and Torterra began pushing each other's attacks away, in an attempt to overpower the opponent. None of them budged, and both trainers were tense in their wait for someone to come out on top. It was a situation of complete stalemate, exacerbated by the deafening roar of the two kinds of energy clashing on each other.

"Infernape!" Ash exclaimed, in a further attempt to encourage his Pokemon. "Infernape... I know you can do it! We have faced so many difficulties together, to come this far... and we always tried to give each other our best... and believe me, you're the best Pokemon a trainer could ever have! Now... I just ask you to make a little more effort! If you lose now... it will have all been for nothing! Come on, Infernape... I believe in you!"

Infernape's eyes narrowed, as he glared at Torterra and Paul through the light of the two clashing attacks. It was a very important moment for him... if he didn't manage to prove himself now, to repay Ash for his kindness and to take his revenge on his hated former trainer... he would never get a second chance! He couldn't let Paul win, both for Ash's sake and for his own! Such determination caused all of his energy to burst outwards, and in a split second, an even more powerful blast of red fire exploded from Infernape's body and overpowered Torterra's Leaf Storm, dissipating it like leaves in the wind! This time, Paul's expression could not be described as anything else than pure shock... but he was powerless to do anything before Infernape was upon his starter, engulfing Torterra in a colossal gout of flames! An explosion of red light swallowed the battlefield, and the closest members of the audience had to cover their eyes not to be dazzled, as the noise of the blast drowned out everything else...

Slowly, the mayhem ceased... and Ash hesitatingly opened his eyes to look at the result of the clash. In the midst of the cinder-covered arena, Infernape and Torterra were both still standing, the former with his fist still extended, and the latter with his head low, and in a guarding position. One of the two had been defeated, that was a given... but which one? For several seconds, under Ash and Paul's tense stares, it looked like time had stopped...

And then, Infernape fell on one knee...

And Torterra, with a sigh of resignation, slumped down on the arena floor and blacked out! The sound of his massive body slamming on the battlefield echoed into the awe-struck stadium... and only after a few more seconds of stunned silence did the announcer regain enough wits to comment again...

"_Torterra... is unable to continue fighting!_" the young woman said, herself in disbelief. "_The winner of this battle... and the new champion of the Sinnoh League is... Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town!_"

**oooooooooo**

In Cerulean City's Gym, the Sensational Sisters stood up from their stool and cheered wildly in victory, as Misty clenched her fists in front of her and smiled radiantly, her eyes watering just a little!

**oooooooooo**

"Ash, my dear..." Delia Ketchum commented, gently wiping her own eyes with her hand. "You did it... I knew you would do it! You became a real Pokemon champion! Your dad... would be so proud of you!"

"_Mime! Mime!_" Mimy cheered, taking part in his human friend's joy!

**oooooooooo**

"And so, Ash, my boy... you did it in the end!" Prof. Oak commented warmly, pleased with Infernape's last blow. "I never had any doubts about it... I knew you had it in yourself!"

"Yeah... Ash always manages to surprise us, huh?" Gary said, halfway between irony and genuine admiration. "Well, what can I say... I am only pleased about this! In the end, Ash was my most worthy rival!"

**oooooooooo**

A whole-hearted, enthustiastic applause rained down from the audience, together with exclamations of joy and victory! Dawn stood up with a victory cry and raised her pom-poms in the air just like her Buneary did, while the calmer Brock had simply smiled and nodded in Ash's direction! As for the newly-crowned champion and the two Pokemon he had fought the last part of the battle with, they were standing at their side of the arena, looking around almost as if in a daze: they couldn't believe it... they had won the Sinnoh League tournament! They had managed to defeat their rival, who had humiliated them time and again, mocking their accomplishments! It was... almost too good to be true!

But disbelief soon faded and was replaced with joy and triumph, as Ash raised his fist in the air and yelled in victory, and the large electronic table at the other end of the stadium displayed a bright WINNER word under his portrait. Despite being tired from the battle, Pikachu and Infernape hugged their trainer energetically, almost causing him to fall over!

"Ow! Hey, Pikachu! Infernape! C'mon, guys, you're making me lose my balance here! Heheheee..." Ash exclaimed, before hugging his Pokemon back and going back to celebrating. "Yeaaaah! We did it, guys! We're the Sinnoh League Champions! Way to go!"

"_PI-KA-CHUUUUU!_"

"_INFEEEEERNAPE!_"

As everyone applauded and cheered all around him, Paul just stood in his place, his face briefly contorted in an expression of shocked rage... but his self-discipline made him regain control soon enough, and the purple-haired boy, with a resignated shrug, recalled Torterra in his Pokeball.

"It can't be helped, I guess." he commented briefly. He then looked at Torterra's Pokeball for a moment, and shrugged, before saying what he needed to. "Hm. All things considered, you did an okay job, Torterra." Then, he put his Pokeball back with the others, and walked towards Ash, who was still hugging Pikachu and Infernape. While it was plain that he was disappointed at the way things had turned out, Paul didn't reallly seem angry at Ash... which was something that surprised Paul himself!

"Ash Ketchum." Paul called out, and Ash stopped celebrating and turned to the opponent he had just defeated, looking at him straight in the eye for a few seconds before Paul said what he needed to say.

"Very well, then. I admit defeat. For now." Paul said, without betraying any emotion. Then, he turned around and began walking away and out of the stadium, as he kept talking to Ash. "But do not think for a moment it ends here. I and my Pokemon will train more, and next time, we're going to win."

Ash, Pikachu and Infernape just kept looking at their rival coldly walking away... and after a moment of silence, Ash nodded and answered, even though Paul was too far away to hear. "We know... and that's why we'll keep on training. We won't lose so easily... certainly not to the likes of you." he said.

"Pika..." Pikachu nodded, his cheeks once again sparking with electricity.

But the triumphant atmosphere returned soon, and Ash grinned joyfully, inviting his Pokemon to join in the celebrations! "Heheheee... but now, why don't we just enjoy our victory? We have become the Sinnoh champions... and that's mostly thanks to you, Infernape! I couldn't have done it without your help, and that of all my Pokemon!"

"INFERNAPE!" the firey monkey answered, still enthusiastic over having shown his worth and given the right comeuppance to his former trainer!

Together, the two Pokemon and the newly crowned champion moved to the stairs leading to the audience, and saw Brock and Dawn enthusiastically come down to greet them...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And so, the Sinnoh tournament ends with Ash's victory, and with Paul finally getting what he really deserved! But... of course, that's just the beginning of the story! As we've seen, a lot of familiar faces have popped up recently... and whether that means we're likely to see them again in the future, well... that's a question I'll leave unanswered for now!**

**Still, I hope you liked this battle! I really had to go all out with this one chapter... and the next one, while more relaxed, will still feature a surprise you probably won't expect!**

**Until next time! Please, leave a review!**

**Lily **


	5. The Ravenous Gible

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back to my story! I can see this fanfic is already quite popular around here, and last chapter has received an healthy number of views and reviews! I need to thank all those who have read this story... especially those who have given me constructive criticism like MoonyMonster, and I hope you will continue to do so! **

**This chapter marks the moment in which the story goes off on a totally different way than the anime - with Takuto not existing, Ash winning the Sinnoh tournament, and Paul still eager to defeat Ash, even our heroes will come to different decisions. So, now, erase any and all notion of the new Best Wishes series, and get ready to embark on a brand new adventure! Already in this chapter, we will see something quite different from the canon series, and as for the next... **

**Well, I'm not going to spoil it for ya, now am I? Let's just sit back and enjoy this chapter! I hope you'll have fun with it and, like always, please review!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 5 - The ravenous Gible**

The echo of the celebrations of the last day's evening had gradually died down, and as the sun was rising upon the large city in which the final battle of the Sinnoh conference had taken place. Now, it looked like one day like all others... except that the enthusiasm and the adrenaline of yesterday's battle could still be felt in the air

This was especially true for the trio of friends who, at the moment, after letting their Pokemon rest at the Center and having eaten a good breakfast, were now back on their way to new destinations. Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn were looking at the big city from a small, verdant hilltop, with the pride of those who had just achieved a great victory. And, in truth, Ash winning his first Pokemon League was a huge result... but now that the time had come to leave the country, all of them felt a strange feeling of both joy and uncertainty, mixed with an understandable nostalgia.

"And so ends our adventure in Sinnoh..." Brock said with a small sigh, his ever-squinted eyes affixed on the metropolis who had seen Ash's first victorious championship duel. "It surely was a great journey, and we've seen a lot of incredible things... well, Ash, what do you think you and Pikachu will be doing now?"

The newly-crowned champion stretched a little, then adjusted his cap on his head and looked at Pikachu, perched on his shoulder with his ears up in enthusiasm. "I was thinking it wouldn't be a bad idea to go back home for a while... don't ya think so too, Pikachu? We've been away for so long, and we've trained so much... and now I guess we deserve some rest, I guess..."

"_Pikachu!_" the electric mouse agreed with an energetic nod.

Nearby, Dawn lowered her eyes a little, ruffling the dew-covered grass with the tip of her boot. So, they were going to return home, to the Kanto continent... well, not like she could blame them, of course. They had been away from their home for so long, that it was only natural that they wated to go back to their loved ones. Still, she couldn't help but feel a bit sad about this... those two boys and their Pikachu had pretty much been her teachers on her way to become a full-fledged coordinator, and had it not been for them and for people like Zoey and Kenny, she would never have gotten as far as she had...

"So, you really are gooing back to Kanto..." the blue-haired girl murmured, trying to seem upbeat, and not quite managing to do so. "Well, what can I say... I'm gonna miss you, guys, and I hope I'll see you again, sooner or later..."

Ash and Pikachu looked quizzically at the blue-haired coordinator. "Well... actually, if you wanna come too, you can! Really, I think you'd like Kanto!" the young boy answered.

"Ash is right... and after all, for a Pokemon coordinator, it could be a good chance to see new Pokemon, and new trainers as well!" Brock added. "It would be a good occasion to learn something more, don't you think so?"

Dawn's eyes widened a bit in a mixture of surprise and happiness at that invitation. In fact, Brock was right... seeing a new continent and a new Pokemon league would have been very interesting, and would have given her a chance to learn something more. However, she didn't want to be a burden on her friends...

"Well... actually, I really like the idea! Seeing the country you twocmefrom sounds really neat, but... won't it be a problem for you?" she asked.

"Hahahaaa! Don't worry, it's no biggie!" Ash laughed good-naturedly. "Mom would be happy to know another one of my friends, instead! She always likes that!"

"Well..." the blue-haired girl answered, thinking about it. Finally, Dawn convinced herself and clenched her fist in front of her. "Then, I agree! Thanks, Ash, Brock, I owe you one!"

"No prob, really!" Sinnoh's newly-crowned champion answered. "It's all a pleasure for us!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu agreed with a bright smile!

Brock nodded, satisfied at how things had turned out, and motioned for his two young friends to get going. "Well, in that case... I guess we'd better start! With a little luck, we'll be arriving in Canalave City in a few days... and we'll take the ship to Kanto from there! How does that sound like to you?"

"Excellent, idea, Brock!" the two younger group members answered in unison, with Pikachu echoing after them with one of his trademark high-pitched calls. They were about to walk away, but they held back as they heard a familiar female voice calling out to them.

"Please, wait! I dare hope you would not go away so soon." said an attractive long-haired blond woman dressed in black as she approached the small team. Ash and his friends immediately recognized Cynthia, the current Champion of Sinnoh League's Elite Four, a supremely skilled trainer that had helped them more than once during their journey and their struggle against the evil Team Galactic. She kept her usual gentle, calm expression as she slowly paced towards them and greeted them with an elegant bow.

"Miss Cynthia! What a surprise, seeing you here!" Ash greeted her. "We're very glad to see you!"

"As I was glad to see your performance in yesterday evening's competition, Ash. You truly gave proof of your superior trainer skills." Cynthia answered gently. "Not only was the audience treated to a very high-level competition, but you also showed them how a real trainer should behave in order to gain absolute devotion and respect from his Pokemon. You have truly given a splendid performance, and for that I have to congratulate you."

"Hehehee... c'mon, Miss Cynthia, you're kinda embarassing me!" Ash replied with a nervous chuckle... but Cynthia shook her head, talking in all honesty.

"I actually mean what I'm saying, Ash." the young female Champion said. "To get the congratulations of Sinnoh's current Champion is not something that happens every day, therefore... be proud of your accomplishment! Even my fellow Elite Four were impressed by your battling."

"Well... if that's so..." Ash answered, already sounding somewhat more uppity. "We... we thank you with all our hearts! Me, Pikachu and all my friends! Without them, I would never have gotten this far... so I guess this victory is theirs as well!"

"_PI-KA-CHU!_" Pikachu exclaimed, his exhaustion ftom his battles against Electivire and Ursaring already gone away.

Cynthia nodded in satisfaction, before addressing the whole group. "Well... so, now that Ash has won this tournament, what are your next goals for the immediate future? Do you already have an idea of what you'll do from this moment on?" she asked. "I ask this simply out of curiosity, that's all..."

"We really haven't decided up to that point..." Brock answered. "Still, we thought it would be a good idea to go back to our home country, Kanto, for a while. Ash deserves some rest after this victory, after all... I'd like to go back home for a while myself... and as for Dawn, we invited her to Kanto too. We thought it would be a great chance for her to see a new country and learn more things."

"Yeah... Ash and Brock convinced me to follow them to Kanto... let's say, it's a bit of a study vacation, and a chance to think of what I'd like to do later on. Also, to telll the truth, I'm curious to see where Ash and Brock come from!"

Cynthia smiled slightly in understanding. "It is only fair that you take a little time off, and I trust your new experiences will be as exciting and fulfilling as those you have had in this country. Well, then... I can only wish you the best of luck, and I hope to see you again, later on!" she concluded. "You were great friends, and you helped me defeat Team Galactic and save our world. You deserve all my respect."

"Thanks, miss Cynthia! We'll always remember you!" Ash answered gently. "And... well, I don't think I, Pikachu and Brock will ever forget about Sinnoh! It was one of our greatest adventures!"

"Indeed, Ash... indeed!" Brock answered, before turning to the rising sun. "Well... I guess we really have to go now. It will take a few days before reaching Canalave Town, and the sooner we start our journey, the better. Still... we were pleased to know you, miss Cynthia... and we hope to see you soon."

"Thank you, everyone. See you soon... and best wishes!" Cynthia said as the four friends began their journey back to Canalave. Each of the four kept turning back to wave at Cynthia and to take a last look at the stadium in which Ash had won his second, and his greatest, championship. They kept doing so, turning back and waving Cynthia goodbye, until they were nothing but four dots in the distance.

Cynthia stayed for a moment, observing the place where her new friends had disappeared... then, she sighed nostalgically and turned back to the stadium. "Well, I guess that's that." she thought aloud to herself. "Even if Team Galactic is no more, what happened with Cyrus and the Distortion World will definitely have consequences, later on... and as the Sinnoh Champion and Elite Four, it is our duty to look into that as well. Anyway, Ash, I was glad to have met an aspiring Pokemon Master such as you... and I knew you would have reached this far. You can be proud of yourself, few would have managed what you did in such little time."

With a slight smile on her young face, the Sinnoh League champion began walking back to the coliseum, who still seemed to be resonating with the previous evening's applauses and cheering, and mentally prepared herself for whatever new problems she and her friends would have had to face. Knowing that the future of Pokemon trainers was also in the hands of people like Ash, Dawn and Brock had left her to think that, despite all difficulties, things could only get better in the future...

**oooooooooo**

But as the heroes were getting back to their long journey, eager to reach the Canalave port, dark shadows were moving in the night, ready to hound their every step and strike whenever Ash and his friends would be more vulnerable...

"You're in for trouble..." a girl's voice said in a vain, self-assured tone.

"Make it double." someone else went on, with a strange voice that sounded like how a cat would have talked had it been able to imitate human voice...

"Such big trouble!" This time, the speaker was a boy, whose tone immediately denounced him as naive and silly, rather than evil...

The cat-like voice repeated the previous words. "Make it double..." Then, like actors in a play, three figures shrouded in darkness came out of the deep underwood and presented themselves, reciting some sort of war cry whose intention was to make them appear formidable... but actually only managed to make them look ridiculous!

"Prepare for trouble, we won't delay!" the female on the left proudly called out, her arms folded on her chest and her nose raised up.

"And make it double, we're here to stay!" the figure on the right answered, revealing himself to be a boy with shoulder-long hair, slightly taller than his female companion, elegantly holding a red rose in front of himself.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

Right then, a reflector's light came down from pretty much nowhere and illuminated the figure on the left: a tall, slender girl of about twenty years of age wearing her trademark midriff-baring Team Rocket uniform, with tall black boots and white skirt and top, the latter bearing the criminal organization's trademark red R. She had crimson red hair, long to the point where, if it had been let down instead of going horizontally, it would have probably reached her knees!

"I am Jessie!" she exclaimed, as if talking to an imaginary audience.

Another light bore down and shone on the boy... a slightly feminine-looking guy with light blue hair and a white male Team Rocket uniform. "And I am James." he calmly said, his eyes closed in an attempt to look charming...

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!" Jessie finally stated, her index finer pointed to a place in front of her.

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!" James concluded, his arm majestly sweeping the air in front of him and spreading a few rose petals in the air.

And, to top everything off, a Meowth popped up from behind the two youngsters, somersaulted through the air, and landed on his feet in front of them, his front paws raised in the air as if he was about to pounce on his prey!

"Meowth! That's right!" he concluded.

For a little while, the three remained standing in their place, as if frozen in their final poses and waiting for an applause... then, the two humans turned to each other and burst out laughing, completely spoiling the dramatic tension!

"Heheheee... returning to our old motto sure was a terrific idea, Jessie, don'cha think so?" James asked, his red rose still held in his hand.

"You can say that again, James!" Jessie answered, smiling radiantly. "You don't know how nostalgic I felt! It made me think of the first times we were trying to capture the twerp's Pikachu... ah, such sweet memories!"

"Yeah, back when there was also the redhead twerp... who knows where she's now, it's been so long since we last saw her... I even kinda forgot what she looks like!" Meowth commented. "Well, anyway... looks like the twerps are back in Kanto... where it all started!"

"Very good! Then, that's where we'll finally accomplish our mission to capture Pikachu and bring him to the boss!" Jessie exclaimed. "Heheee... dunno about you guys, but I feel like we're gonna win this!"

"Yeah, me too!" Meowth agreed. "I'm sure this time it all will go according to plan, and I'll be the boss' favourite once again! Start packing, you stupid Persian, 'cuz Meowth is back in da house!"

In his mind, Meowth was already visualizing himself sitting in Giovanni's lap, purring contentedly as the Team Rocket boss petted him, and Persian lied on the ground with spiralling eyes and a huge lump on his head!

"Finally, it's time for Team Rocket to get their moment of glory!" James proclaimed, his fistsraised in the air, and stars shining comically all around him! "Prepare yourselves, twerps, 'cause we're really gonna show you what we're made of! Your Pikachu won't escape us!"

The goofy criminal trio burst in triumphant laughter, thinking that this was the moment for them to vindicate all their previous defeats... and at the same time, drawing the attention of a lot of flabbergasted wild Pokemon, including a small swarm of Beedrill who was happily buzzing about their own businesses! The giant hornets looked at the trio with a nonplussed expression on their insectile faces... and, when a worker hornet turned to one of her colleagues, as if asking what was going on, the latter shook her head and tapped her temple with her sting-paw.

"_Beeeeedrill..._" she buzzed, as if saying that there were many crazy people out there...

**oooooooooo**

Ash, Pikachu, Dawn and Brock had been walking for some time now, and the youngest members of the team were more than happy to hear Brock proposing to stop to rest and eat something. After the younger kids had let their backpacks off their shoulders, Brock placed a few rocks in a circle on the ground, putting a few logs inside of it, and produced some cooking tools and canned food he had bought before the start of the journey.

"I had no idea how long the journey back would have been, and I wasn't sure whether there would have been two of us or all three, so I bought some extra food." the dark-skinned boy explained. "Alright, guys... now, just relax, I'll take care of the rest here!"

"Thanks, Brock! Sometimes I ask myself where we would be without you!" Ash commented as he lay down on the grass, letting out a sigh of relief as he enjoyed the feel of the fresh grass. Pikachu laid down beside him with a satisfied squeak, as the young boy looked to the clear blue sky, dotted with a few white clouds. He still could scarcely believe it... he had won the Sinnoh conference! He had gained first place in his second Pokemon League, alongside the Orange Island League, and better yet, he had managed to finally defeat one of his most bitter rivals, although he was sure he hadn't seen the last of him. And beyond that, he had met a lot of interesting, funny and strong Pokemon, who had given him a lot of satisfactions... especially Infernape. To top it off, he had guided his new friend, Dawn, in her beginning journey, and had seen her become a great coordinator and the winner of the Grand Festival! All in all, Ash and Pikachu were very satisfied about the outcome of their new journey, and could not wait to go back home and speak about their adventures to their friends in Pallet Town...

"_Pika pi?_" Pikachu, sitting at his side, called out to him, and Ash turned in the direction of his best friend, smiling gently to him.

"What about you, Pikachu? You liked our stay in Sinoh as well, huh?" Ash asked, to which the electric mouse gave a thumbs-up. "Hehee... you're right, I guess Mom and Prof. Oak will be quite impressed when we tell them about it. Actually, I think I'm gonna miss this country... it was such a nice journey, too..."

"Say, Ash..." Dawn asked out of simple curiosity. "Could you tell me a little more about Kanto, the place you come from? I heard about some of its cities, but other than that, I know little about it. Especially your town, Pallet Town... what kind of place is it?"

"Hehehee... I know it sound ironic, but it's very similar to your own town, Twinleaf!" Ash answered. "It's a simple country city immersed in nature, with ground-floor houses and an unpaved road... though I heard that recently they've started working to modernize it. Still, I think you'd like it... and anyway, don't worry! I'm sure you'll get to see it very soon!"

"Really? I'm very glad to know that! And to tell you the truth, I'm kinda excited over going to another country for the first time..." Dawn answered, once again realizing just how much more independent she had become thanks to her journey. And the two kids and Pikachu kept chatting amicably among each other, Brock looked at them and allowed himself a smile. It was always nice to see those two bonding with each other like this...

Then, his mind going back to the lunch he was about to prepare, the young Rock Pokemon expert placed the wood properly and filled a small pan with water to put it on the fire... when he reallized that something was mising. He was sure he had taken some canned meat out of his backpack and had put it somewhere nearby... but if that was the case, why had they now vanished? He looked around himself, in case he had placed them somewhere else and didn't remember... and he was surprised by what he saw: the cans were, in fact, a little farther from where he had placed them, and they were in the hands of a Pokemon he and his friends had never seen before!

"Huh? Where... does this Pokemon come from? Which species is it?" Brock asked himself aloud, drawing even Ash, Dawn and Pikachu's attention. It was one of the most comical-looking Pokemon any of them had ever seen - a short, plump body seemingly devoid of a neck, whose head was for the most part occupied by an overlarge mouth filled with rows of tiny, sharp triangular teeth. A pair of short clawed arms jutted out of his sides, just a little below the corners of his mouth. His body was a bluish-gray all over, with a red belly, and a pair of horns on the sides of his head, each looking like a plane's rotor. On his head there was a small crest looking like a shark's dorsal fin... but most important of all at the moment, the strange Pokemon had their cans of food in his hands and was busy eating them one by one, tin and everything!

"Brock, what's up? Is there..." Ash began, only to notice the Pokemon that had stealthily approached them. "What... what kind of Pokemon is that?"

The equally-surprised Dawn opened her Pokedex and took a good look at it... and one second later, the small electronic device lit up and gave data for the strange little creature. "_Gible. The Land Shark Pokemon. Dragon / Ground Type. Pre-evolved form of Gabite. These Pokemon once lived in tropical regions, but have migrated away in recent years. To avoid cold, they lived in sunny places or warm caves. They are very ravenous and will eat anything deemed edible._"

"Well, we can sort of see that by ourselves..." Dawn chuckled as she saw the eagerness with which the barely two-foot-tall Pokemon was gulping down entire cans of food like popcorn. "The problem is, it's our lunch he's eating... Go, Piplup!"

The blue-haired girl sent her inseparable friend out, and Piplup appeared in front of her and spread his small wings in preparation for the fight. Immediately, he got Gible's attention, and the small land shark dropped the stolen cans of food and stood on guard.

"Take care, Dawn, that's a Dragon / Ground Pokemon... Water attacks do not have the effect they normally would." Ash warned, remembering the fight between Paul's Torterra and Cynthia's Garchomp. Only a Frenzy Plant attack had managed to even put a scratch on the mighty dragon, and even that, just barely.

"No need to worry, Ash! I think I already got it under control! After all, Ursula has this Pokemon's evolved version, so I have an idea what it's capable of. Piplup, attack with Ice Beam, now!" the girl answered. The blue penguin chirped his own name nd created a glowing azure-white sphere of energy on the tip of his beak, spreading a freezing aura all around itself. The ravenous Gible frowned in alarm as he recognized that the attack could really do some damage to him, ad only a fast sideways dodge allowed him to dodge the freezing beam that erupted out of Piplup's mouth a second later! The small dragon still felt a chill as the Ice Beam went dangerously close to him, and then fell uncerimoniously on the ground. Encouraged by this initial victory, Piplup tried to attack again in the same way... but Gible climbed to his feet and, for just a split second, Ash and his friends could see a strange orange light burning in the bottom of the small Pokemon's throat. Then, Gible fired a small sphere of energy upwards, which Piplup followed... only to widen his eyes in surprise and fear as the projectile burst into countless, smaller others who rained down on him!

"Piplup, take care!" Dawn exclaimed. Unfortunately, Piplup was in such a position that he just couldn't avoid all those projectiles, and two of them struck him head-on, sending him to the ground in a cloud of smoke! Ash, Pikachu and their friend stepped backwards, as Gible took advantage of the confusion, picked up a couple cans and ran away towards the forest!

"Ugh... what kind of attack was that? Darn, guys, that Gible is running away!" Ash exclaimed as he tried to wave the smoke away. Dawn looked around in worry, fearing that her Piplup might have gotten hurt... but luckily, the penguin Pokemon steped out of the smoke, although with a dazed expression and obviously dismayed at having been caught off guard like that.

"_Pip-lup..._" he chirped, shrugging his short wings as if in apology, but Dawn was more worried about her starter's condition than anything else. Luckily, as she approached Piplup, she could see that the attack had not really been taken head on, and the damage amounted to a few blackened feathers and a bruised pride.

"Piplup, you okay?" Dawn asked. When the small penguin nodded, his trainer sighed in relief and turned in the direction through which Gible was escaping. The little landshark was fast, but not to the point where they couldn't reach him , if they ran... "Alright, guys, we need to catch up with that Pokemon! He's running away with our lunch!"

"He's gotten a bit of a head start on us, but we can catch up." Brock answered, and the three of them, joined by Pikachu and Piplup, began running after the naughty little dragon. With a slight snapping noise, Gible dove into a bush and into the forest, but Ash's group had caught up with him to some degree, and was able to follow him, dodging a few branches and leaves as they ran. Pikachu was about to charge his cheeks pouches and unleash a Thunderbolt attack on the thief, but he immediately thought better of it, remembering that Gible was partially a Ground type Pokemon. Oh well, no matter, there were other ways to stop him...

Just then, Gible stopped in front of a bifurcation of the road, with both ways running deeper into the forest, and he seemed to be undecided where to go. The voracious little dragon turned his head in both directions as he tried to decide quickly... but Pikachu, thanks to his superior speed, was upon him in a moment and tackled him to the ground with a spectacular Slam attack. Gible shrieked in surprise before falling prone on the ground, dropping the stolen cans of food as he did, while the rest of the team reached the bifurcation.

"Well done, Pikachu! You caught him..." Ash started...

...before the ground under them gave way all of a sudden, revealing a well-hidden trap consisting of a wide and rather deep hole, covered with a large blanket kept sustained by a bunch of fragile wooden sticks, disposed in such a way that anything over a certain weight stepping upon it would have caused the whole thing to collapse. The trap had been covered with dirt and leaves, so that it was impossible to distinguish it from the safe ground. In a moment, Ash, Pikachu, Dawn, Piplup, Brock and Gible found themselves at the bottom of the hole, covered in dust but unharmed!

"Ouch... Boy, that was quuite the surprise..." Dawn murmured, rubbing her back in not too elegant a manner. "For crying out loud, what's this trap doing here?"

"I already have half a mind who it could have been... right, Pikachu?" Ash answered as he climbed to his feet and dusted himself off. The small electrical mouse, who had already seen such tricks in the past, sighed in irritation and looked upwards, just in time to hear a triumphant noblewoman's laugh and see a telltale Meowth hot air balloon rising up above the trees!

"Yeah, just as we thought..." Brock sighed himself. And, just as the team had predicted, the familiar motto began!

At least that caught them somewhat off guard, as it was not the most recent one.

"Prepare for trouble, we won't delay!" Jessie began.

"And make it double, we're here to stay!" James went on.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"I am Jessie!"

"And I am James."

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!" Jessie stated, her arms crossed on her chest in a proud, challenge-filled pose.

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!" James said, holding his trademark red rose with two fingers.

Meowth popped up between the two goofy criminals and raised his forepaws, his face sporting a huge Cheshire cat grin. "Meowth! That's right!"

"_Wobbuffet!_" Wobbuffet screeched, spontaneously popping out of his Pokeball with his trademark military salute.

"Yeah... saw that coming..." Ash murmured. Then, he frowned slightly as a small detail crossed his mind. "Er... let me guess, you three! You've decided to turn back to the old motto and the old little tricks?"

"Hohohohooo! Of course we did, twerp, and as you can plainly see, they worked perfectly!" Jessie laughed. "You see... we had time to think while you were busy giving that purple-haired jerk the what-for... and we've figured out that, in order to succeeed in capturing Pikachu, we needed to... let's put it this way... stop overthinking it and just go with what used to work! The old trick of the concealed hole was always the most effective!"

"That's right, Jessie! Even our motto is back to the old one, as you could plainly hear!" James went on, laughing happily. "By returning to our origins, we're back to being the fearsome Team Rocket we once were... and now your Pikachu is all ours!"

"And since we're talking old methods... well, here's one!" Meowth answered as he produced a remote control from who-knows-where and activated it. A small compartment on the bottom of the hot air balloon snapped open and released a metal claw mounted on an hydraulic arm, which sneaked its way into the pit and grabbed Pikachu, lifting him up in the air as the electric mouse squeaked and tried to free himself!

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed. He tried to grab his friend as the hydraulic arm rose again, but he wasn't fast enough to do so.

"Pikachu!" Dawn echoed. "Ash, why don't you have Pikachu use an electric attack of sorts? He'd hit the balloon as well, from there!"

Ash shook his head, remembering how those traps worked. "I'm afraid it would be useless, Dawn... if I know Team Rocket, they've isolated the hydraulic arm in some way!"

"Heheheee... I guess you finally got it, twerp!" Meowth meowed. "Exactly! That hydraulic arm is protected with a rubber coating that makes it impervious to electricity! Let's see how you handle that now!"

"I've got other Pokemon to save Pikachu with!" Ash retorted. "C'mon, Gliscor, you turn! _Gotta catch 'em all!_"

Ash tossed his Pokeball in the air, where it released the playful winged scorpion. "_Gliiiscor!_" he screeched as he took flight, happily flying in circles around Ash and his friends!

"Hehehee... I really appreciate that, Gliscor!" Ash chuckled, mentally kicking himself for forgetting about the Ground / Flying Pokemon's playful nature. "But... maybe we could play later, okay? Right now... please, lend Pikachu a hand! Use Aerial Ace against that balloon!"

The flying scorpion nodded and glided towards Team Rocket, his claws and stinger gleaming in the early afternoon sun. However, the troublesome trio was not daunted in the least, and Wobbuffet placed himself between them and Gliscor, peeking out of the balloon just enough to see his opponent coming. The strange Psychic Pokemon was shrouded in a yellowish aura and, just as Gliscor was a few feet away from him, he found himself paralyzed in midair, and then telecinetically tossed away by his opponent's Counter! With an annoyed screech, Gliscor recovered his flying asset and tried to regain his altitude, as Ash's team, Gible included, kept looking from bellow and hoping Gliscor would do it.

"Hmm... I guess we better get involved as well, Jessie!" James advised, opening one of his Pokeballs. "Right then... Carnivine, your turn!"

"Come on, Seviper! Lend a hand!" Jessie ordered. The gigantic adder and the carnivorous plant materialized inside the balloon.. and Carnivine immediately decided to show his affection to James by huggin him with his vines and grabbing his head in his mouth, an habit he shared with every Grass-type Pokemon the hapless young man ever had!

"Uuuuugh... not me, Carnivine! Them!" James' muffled voice came from the inside of Carnivine's mouth.

"Well, we'd better do our share..." Dawn decided. "Right, Togekiss... your turn, go!"

"Sudowoodo, I choose you!" Brock exclaimed. From the blue-haired girl's Pokeball came the majestic final form of Togepi, a graceful and elegant Flying Pokemon with an egg-shaped white body with multicolored spots all over, and short angel-like wings. At the same time, Brock let his latest Rock-type Pokemon out, a strange creature who looked like a tree, but whose body actually consisted of colored stone.

"Carnivine, attack with Bullet Seed! Now!" James explained. The carnivorous plant started shooting a quick, lethally accurate volley of seeds, targetting the more vulnerable Sudowoodo, who had to defend himself as well as possible.

"Sudowoodo, use Mimic and give him a taste of his own medicine!" Brock countered. Immediately, the stone tree raised his head and attacked Carnivine with the very same move that had been used against him, striking his opponent in the head! Carnivine flinched and fell on his own trainer, and this time, it was definitely not his intention to do so!

Meanwhile, Jessie's Seviper was fighting against Dawn's Togekiss, without making too much progress! The Flying Pokemon, Princess Salvia's gift to the young coordinator, was quick enough to avoid the snake's attacks with relative ease, and the impatient Jessie was getting quite frustrated with that. "Ugh... come on, Seviper, what are you doing?" she exclaimed, a cross-shaped vein popping up on her head. "Stop that stupid flying egg with Glare! Now!"

"Togekiss, protect yourself! Use Safeguard!" Dawn ordered. A paralyzing attack would have been too dangerous for Togekiss at the moment...

The saber-toothed adder's eyes lit up, and Dawn's latest Pokemon felt herself grow dangerously numb, and her wings become heavy... but before the Glare attack could take full effect, an iridescent barrier appeared in front of Togekiss and nullified the attack. Dawn nodded in approval, before giving out another order. "Good, Togekiss! Now... hit Seviper with Air Cutter!"

"_Togekiss!_" the cute winged Pokemon answered, diving towards the viper at high speed... but Seviper raised her bladed tail and blocked the hit with Poison Tail. Togekiss separated herself from her opponent and flew around the hot air balloon, waiting for an opening...

Gliscor was still dealing with Wobbuffet and, having seen that it was dangerous to make the first move against the passive Pokemon, he decided to play it safe and stay at a reasonable distance. Wobbuffet was following him as well as he could with his always-serrated eyes...

And Ash, looking at that from the ground, wrinkled his nose. The battle was getting nowhere fast, and becoming too long for his tastes. He decided that it would be a good idea to let out Staraptor and send him to help the flying scorpion... when Gible, all of a sudden, stood up and shook the dust off himself before glancing up, glaring at Team Rocket's balloon with resolve! It looked like he had decided to get involved himself, and Ash, Dawn, Brock and Pikachu all looked at him, wondering what he was going to do...

"Guys, we'd better hightail it out of here and take Pikachu with us!" Meowth exclaimed as he saw Ash's Pokemon starting to pressure theirs. "I'm gonna get us some altitude here..."

"Hold on! What's going on there?" James asked after getting free from the tangle of the stunned Carnivine's vines. He had seen a strange orange light coming from the pit they had dug...

"I guess he wants to use the same attack as before..." Brock commented.

Gible proved him right a split second later. Once again, an orange energy bullet was formed in the strange drake's jaws and sailed at high speed towards Team Rocket's hot air balloon! The clumsy criminals and their Pokemon widened their eyes in dismay when they realized what was going on, but it was too late to do anything.

"Aaaaargh! No way! I can't believe this!" Jessie screamed in fear and frustration.

...

...

KAAAA-BOOOOOOOOM!

Team Rocket's hot air balloon was struck by the land shark's powerful attack and blew up in a deafening explosion, sending the hapless criminals and their Pokemon high in the air as usual, and allowing Pikachu to wriggle free of the claw's grip and jump in his expecting trainer's arms!

"I can't believe this! We had planned this in all particulars, and that runt comes and ruins our day! That's not fair!" Jessie ranted.

"I was kinda expecting it to end like this, though..." James murmured dejectedly, only to be glared at by his female companion!

"And you, don't be a bad luck charm, okay?" she screamed. "I've already had enough for today!"

"_Seviperrrrr..._" the adder Pokemon hissed in indignation, as if agreeing with her master's mood.

"Well then... let's hear the punchline..." Meowth sighed.

"_Team Rocket, blasting off agaaaaaaain..._"

"_WOBBUFFEEEEEEET..._"

And for the umpteenth time, the unfortunate trio became nothing more than a twinkle in the sky...

"Phew... and once again, guys, it ends just as expected... right, Pikachu?" Ash asked, as Pikachu nodded and sprayed a few sparkles from his cheeks. Togekiss, Gliscor and Sudowoodo rushed to the hole, to see if everyone was alright, and the tree-like Pokemon extended his arms so that his trainer and his friends could hold to those and climb up. However, Ash stopped for a moment to take a look at Gible. The small dragon Pokemon was now standing tall - well, as tall as he was - and looking proud of his accomplishment. "Whoa, this little guy sure packs a punch! He blew away Team Rocket with that strange move... by the way, which move was that? Anybody know?"

Brock shook his head, much to Ash, Dawn and the Pokemons' surprise. "No, guys... I'm sorry but I can't help you here. I know this sounds strange, but I've never seen that move myself. And since I'm talking as an aspiring Pokemon breeder, well... guess that means we'll have to find someone who knows more than we do about it..."

"I see..." the still amazed Ash answered. "Oh, well... for now, let's just get outta here, and we'll think of the rest later! You're okay with that, too?"

Gible tilted his head in confusion as the rest of the team started climbing out of the pit, with Gliscor, Sudowoodo and Togekiss aiding them from above.

**oooooooooo**

A few moments later, the whole team had climbed out of the pit, and Ash was now in front of Gible, balancing a Pokeball in his hand as he attempted to capture the small Dragon pokemon. "Alright, Gible, this'll only take a sec. You just stay there, and I'll do the rest! Pokeball, go! _Gotta catch 'em all!_"

The red and white ball sailed through the air and towards Gible, who seemed to comply... until suddently, as soon as the ball was within range of his jaws, Gible opened his mouth and caught the sphere in it, biting on that like an apple. A metallic screech was heard, and the Pokeball bent and shattered in countless pieces of debris, which Gible happily began to munch on! Ash felt his eyes shoot out of his orbits in astonishment...

"WHA...?" the young boy exclaimed as Gible gulped down the fragments of the sphere with a satisfied smirk, and even smothered a small burp. "I can't believe this! He... he actually ate my Pokeball?"

As the others observed in disbelief, Gible looked around himself and began walking towards Brock... and when he reached him, he began rubbing on his leg like an affectionate kitten, which the Rock Pokemon experted immediately understood, letting out an amusing chuckle even as the Dragon / Ground Pokemon's immense strength was threatening to tip him over.

"Hehehee... you know what, Ash? I think this little guy just chose who he wants to be captured by!" the dark-skinned boy commented. "He must have understood that I'm the team chef... and that he's gonna get the better food from me!"

Ash sweatdropped, and Dawn placed her hand in front of her mouth to smother a giggle fit... while Pikachu simply shrugged, as if to say there was no helping it. "Ugh... I really didn't see that one coming... I didn't know Pokemon could be opportunistic too! Oh well..." the boy stated, his nose wrinkling in a funnily offended face.

Brock, on the other hand, produced a Pokeball from his own backpack. "Alright, Gible... so you want me to capture you? It's been quite some time since I last got a new Pokemon, truth be told..." the dark-skinned young man said. Gible hopped around happily, like an excited dog, and get away from Brock as much as necessary to allow him to take aim with the Pokeball. "If that's okay with you... Pokeball, go!"

This time, Gible didn't react and let the sphere touch him and absorb him inside. The Pokeball snapped close and began tilting from side to side for a little while, before stopping and giving the signal that the capture had been successful!

"Perfect!" Brock exclaimed, picking up his Pokeball and holding it in front of himself. "Welcome in our team, Gible! I'm sure you'll like it, and I'm gonna take good care of you!"

"I guess that as long as he has something to chew on, Gible will be okay with us!" Ash commented with an amused laugh... before his stomach loudly reminded him that they had not eaten yet! The young champion fell to his knees with his hand on his belly and a small stream of saliva hanging out of his mouth... "Ugh... but I guess, in all this, we've forgotten that we still haven't eaten a thing... and I'm starving!"

"Hehehee... sorry, you're right!" Brock apologized with an hand behind his head. "Okay then... we'd better get back to the camp and set up our meal! It's kinda late, after all..."

And so, the small team began heading back to the clearing in which Brock had been trying to fix lunch, their new Pokemon with them, and ready to face new adventures.

In such a setting of happiness and relaxation, they certainly had no idea something dangerous was brewing somewhere else...

Something that would soon drag them into the greatest adventure of their lives...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And there you have it! Gible has finally joined Ash's team, although in a different way than many of you were probably expecting, and we get some foreshadowing on future events at the very end? Well, you just have to wait for next chapter... which, I can already tell you, will definitely blow you away! **

**Also, you'll notice that I had Jessie's Seviper be a female in my story. After all, the anime never specified Seviper's gender, right? Trust me, I know what I'm doing, and it will be important later. But saying why would be a major spoiler, so just bear with it for now, ok? **

**So... hope to be able to update soon, and best wishes to all of you!**

**Lily**


	6. Max Begins His Journey

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Author's Note: Welcome back to my story! I hope I didn't take too much time for your liking, and I welcome you to a chapter which will get the story going for real! In this chapter, we will start to see just how much will be at stake here, and we will also see a few old faces make a comeback, along with the start of a new trainer's journey! If you've read the title, I guess you already know what to expect... ^_^**

**What you might not expect, on the other hand, is another couple of returning characters... and I'm not saying any more! I'm not letting you get spoiled that easily, and I'll leave you the honour of reading through my story to know what I'm talking about! **

**This fanfic will be halted from the 26th of this month to the 5th of January, due to the author being away from home, but I will get back to this and both my Super Robot Wars stories as soon as I'm back! Be patient, the fun is just getting started!**

**For now, enjoy my new chapter!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 6 - Max Begins His Journey**

"Hmm... very well! For now, things are progressing as planned!"

Sitting in front of a large computer, in what looked like a large control room filled with luminous screens and flashing lights, a mysterious masked individual was looking at some graphs rapidly showing up on the screens, showing what looked like complex measurements allong with images of powerful-looking Pokemon, among which it was possible to discern Kanto's Legendary Bird trio, Johto's Legendary Cat trio, and others like Mew, Mewtwo, Lugia... each of them accompained by some data and a brief description. The shadowy person, whose only visible distinctive feature was the semicircular helmet, complete with mask, on his head, pressed a few buttons on the console, showing more machineries working full power to produce some peculiar kind of Pokeballs - they were black and white, with purple vertical lines on the upper part and an azure-greyish button in the place where the two halves met. A nasty grin painted itself on the unknown man's face, as he watched the production being endlessly carried out.

"Perfect... even the production of Dark Balls is continuing at maximum efficiency!" he spoke, talking in a cold, cruel voice which spoke volumes of his wickedness - if his appearence and demeanor were not a dead giveaway already. "Soon... very soon... my team will be able to begin carrying out my plan. And then... Giovanni and his Team Rocket will become nothing but a distant memory! Hehehee... and that's just for starters!"

Another screen lit up on a nearby terminal, and the shadowy man turned in that direction to see a detailed map of the whole planet, with a beeping red dot appearing on an island just a little above the Equator. An image of Moltres, one of Kanto's Legendary Birds, a crimson-red phoenix whose feathers were live flames, had appeared in the top-left corner of the screen...

"And it just keeps getting better! Looks like one of my targets' hideout has been found! That's excellent, the retrieval operations can begin already!" the man said to himself, pressing a blue button on his left. A little less than two minutes after that, a sliding door on the other side of the control room opened up with a slight hissing noise, letting in a tall female figure with shining silver hair, wearing a dark grey uniform and with a distinctively detached and cruel look to her face. The woman took a couple steps forward, then stopped in the middle of the room and stood on attention in front of the menacing masked man.

"You called for me, sir. Any news?" the woman icily asked. At that moment, the dim light of the control room shone on her, revealing her appearence at least partly - she was tall, apparently between 30 and 40 years of age, and was wearing a dark gray overall reaching down to her ankles, over a red form-fitting uniform and matching shoes. On her left arm, a strange grey device was mounted, reminescent of some superhero's electronic gizmo, and her expression was one of calm cruelty, if such thing was possible... the face of someone who would have let nothing and no one stand in her way.

"You're punctual as usual, J." the masked person said, stepping away a little from the console and turning to the newcomer. "Yes, indeed there are news... and very interesting ones at that. Look... seems some of my spies have discovered the position of one of Kanto's Legendary Birds... Moltres, the Bird of Fire! We know where to look for him now... the northest one of the Sevii Islands, a group of small islands south of Kanto! It appears Moltres has chosen to rest in a long-dormant volcano... he seems to believe he'll never be bothered in such a place! Of course, I dare say it won't be an hard task for you to find and capture him, right?"

"I have not earned my reputation as a professional Pokemon hunter for nothing, sir." J, the infamous Pokemon hunter and poacher, who had until recently been working for Team Galactic and their insane leader Cyrus, answered with a cold smile. "Very well, then. I'll immediately begin preparations, and we'll be taking off for the Sevii Islands in a few days. Still, I'd like to make clear that I'm expecting a bonus for this capture. This is not your everyday capture job."

The masked man smiled ominously. "Sure. Crystal clear. Still, if that was meant to be a threat, know that I am not impressed in the least." he answered, his tone of voice not changing one iota. "Just to make things clear, I'd like to remind you that I could crush you like an insect in no time, if so I wanted."

"I well know that." J answered stoically. "Given these premises, I still believe we can work together just fine. Fine. I'll gather some of our most promising men, and I'll be starting this mission as soon as possible. I will capture Moltres and hand it to you."

"Very well." the man answered, turning back to his console. "You're dismissed, for now at least. I'll be looking forward to good news, J. Do not disappoint me."

Hunter J bowed and walked away, letting the door slide in place behind her as soon as she was out. Satisfied, the masked man turned back to his calculations and his computers, inputting more commands and visualizing even more astruse graphs. Another unsettling smile danced on his lips, and his right hand's fingers stroke his short black goatee.

"And once again... that's all good! It's all going in my favour!" he murmured to himself. "Very soon, I will triumph where even Cyrus and his Team Galactic failed! It will be my triumph, and I will not be denied that!"

**oooooooooo**

"Ooooh... it sure feels strange to get back home after staying away from it for so much time! I have to admit, I kinda missed this city!" May exclaimed, deeply breathing in as her and her younger brother Max reached the top of a small hill, near Littleroot Town, the place from which the young girl had started her training. Two years had been since the young coordinator had left that city to begin her Pokemon journey, which had brought her incredibly close to being Hoenn's new coordinating champion... and above all, since the day she had met Ash after an unfortunate happening with her bicycle! Going back to one's place of origin, after spending so much time travelling, sure was a peculiar exerience... and yet, a very pleasing one! Still, the reason she and her brother had come back was not just some nostalgia filler... it was a very important occasion! "So, lil' bro, how about it? You ready to choose your first Pokemon?"

Max, May's little brother, stood by her side, looking at his hometown with barely-contained enthusiasm. "Is that anyway to ask, sis? I was just waiting for this day! I can finally choose my own Pokemon and shoot for the Hoenn League myself!" the bespectacled boy answered. "And... I'm sure that my strategies will allow me to gain the eight Badges and enter the champion league!"

"Hehehee... you sure, lil' bro? Don't forget that time you lost because you were wasting too much time on your strategy!" his older sister remindedhim, tapping her forehead with her indexfinger. In embarassment, Max stepped backwards and ruffled his own hair with his hand, trying to cover that mistake.

"Er... yeah... I'll admit, that time I wasted too many moves powering up my Pokemon, and I didn't attack when I should have had..." he tried to excuse himself. "But... well, I guess I did learn something by looking at you and Ash in action! Well, let's just say Ash, since you're not exactly aworld authority! Heheheee..." he ended his sentence with a knowing grin and a sideways glance to his sister, who obviously did not take the insinuation too well: a red blaze lit up in the background behind her, and a pulsating vein popped up on her forehead, as a sign that the young coordinator was blowing her fuse!

"Ugh... you little ingrate! And here I even went as far as to interrupt my training journey to come and fetch you in Petalburg, even getting you home to be nice... and that's the thanks I get! Such a nice little brother I've got!" she exclaimed, before pinching the bespectacled boy's cheeks and pulling them, comically enlargening his mouth!

"Owwww... just joking, sis... owwww..." the young boy murmured as he tried to squirm free. May's anger vanished instantaneously, a sign that the girl hadn't really gotten offended. She immediately relinquished her grip on her younger brother's cheeks, and Max closed one eye and gingerly rubbed a sore spot. "Ouch... gosh, sis, you sure are Miss Considerate, aren't you?"

"Hehehee... what can I say, some people bring out the best in me!" she quipped, never losing one beat in front of her younger brother's sarcasm. Then, she cleared her voice and went on, looking at the small town. "Anyway, sorry about that... I just wanted to joke around a little! So, lil' bro, how about it? Shall we go choose your first Pokemon?"

"Yeah, yeah..." Max murmured, combing his hair back in place. "Just leave it to you to drop the discussion. Oh, well, no matter, I'm ready! C'mon, sis, Professor Birch must be waiting for us!"

May laughed and ruffled her brother's hair again, undoing all of Max's work. "Okay, Max... then, let's go! Have you already chosen your starter? I thought you once said you'd have liked a Treecko..."

"Yeah, I did say so, but I'm not so sure now..." Max answered. "In fact, now that I think of it, I was never really sure... I guess I'll wait until I'm there, and I'll see which Pokemon are available. Then, I'll choose one!"

The two siblingsbegan walking towards the small town, crossing through the patches of tall grass littered with colourful flowers, as the chirping of Taillows and Pidgeys could be heard all around. For May and Max, it wa a very emotional moment, as they were reliving the fateful day in which they had met Ash and started their journey together with him and Brock! And now, they were back together for the start of Max's adventure in the world of trainers and Gym leaders.

It didn't take long for them to reach the town and, after a short walk, the laboratory in which Professor Birch had given May her first Pokemon, Torchic, just two years earlier... and just as they thought, they found a rather large group of aspiring trainers and coordinators gathered in front of the main entrance, all eagerly waiting for the labto open and for the opportunity to choose their and Max counted at least ten of them, Max himself not included... and as time went by, their enthusiastic voices were growing in loudness and intensity, from the impatience to begin their adventure. Luckily, they didn't have much longer to wait, and when the lab door opened, and Professor Birch appeared from behind it, the shrill little voices calmed down, and all the kids stepped back a little to allow the robust scientist to pass through the door. Professor Birch was a man of considerable age, although he was a lot younger than Kanto's Professor Samuel Oak, or Sinnoh's Professor Rowan, and he looked quite portly, with dark brown hair linked to his short beard through his long sideburns. Other than his labcoat, he was wearing a blue shirt with short green pants and a pair of leather sandals, exactly like May and Max remembered him from two years before.

"Oooh, welcome, everybody! It's a pleasure to meet you all!" he exclaimed, loudly and friendly. "I guess you're all here to receive your starters... then, I'll try to make this as quick as possible and not hold you here for long! I am Prof. Birch, an expert in the Pokemon field... and I am also the person chosen to give you your starters and your Pokedexes! If you have a question, any question, do not hesitate to ask! An now... well, I guess it's better to just show you the Pokemon you're allowed to choose from. As always, you can pick from three kinds of Pokemon, a Fire-type, a Water-type and a Grass-type. Please, come in and make your choice!"

The kids had no need to hear that from him... and in fact, one second later, they charged into the lab in mass, reaching the tables upon which the Pokeballs were exposed, divided by Pokemon type. Most aspiring trainers had aready made their choice from the beginning and darted towards the respective Pokeballs, while a few others stood apart, wondering on the choice to make. Max, his sister never straying too much from him, entred the lab with some shyness and looked around. Sure, he imagined the first day to be chaotic, but he had been quite amazed by his fellow aspiring trainers' enthusiasm...

"Man, they sure are enthusiastic about it... to say the least!" the boy commented, adjusting his glasses.

"Oh, what a surprise! It feels like yesterday since you came here to get your Torchic, May!" Professor Birch greeted the two siblings. "And now, you've come back as a first-class coordinator, and your Torchic has evolved into a Blaziken! Good to see you again!"

"Pleased to meet you again as well, Professor Birch!" the girl greeted back with a respectful bow. "I came here to accompany my brother Max, since it's his moment to choose his first Pokemon."

"Oh,you're right! Since Max turned ten just recently, that means it's his time to receive a starter!" the scientist answered, turning to the boy a moment later. "Welcome, Max! So... have you already decided on a Pokemon to choose?"

"Good day, professor Birch... actually, I'm still not sure about that!" said Max, eyeing the Pokeballs on the table. Several kids had already made their choice, and had made way for the remaining ones. "I need a moment to think it over..."

"No problem, take all the time you need. Nobody is pressuring you." Birch answered. "See, that's the line for those who will choose Torchic, then there's the line of the Treeckos and finally, the one for the Mudkips. Take your time to make a choice."

Max placed himsef in front of the Pokeball table and looked at the three lines of Pokeballs in front of him. For a moment, his eyes fell on the Treecko line, remembering what he had said some time earlier... but now, he was not that convinced any more. Then, almost distractedly, he looked at the Mudkip line and stood there for a few seconds, as other aspiring trainers made their choice. A few seconds more...

Finally, after thinking about it a little more, the bespectacled boy reached forward and took a Pokeball containing a Mudkip. "Okay, professor Birch! I'm choosing this one!" he proclaimed. "I'll take Mudkip as my starter!"

"Good! Quite a popular choice, I have to say..." Birch affirmed. "I'm sure it will be a great Pokemon for you! Why don't you try letting him out of the Pokeball and talking to him a little?"

"Of course!" Max answered, looking for a place where he could let his very first Pokemon out. Then, he activated his Pokeball with the same gesture he had seen Ash, Brock and his sister do so many times...

And a red beam of light came out of the Pokeball, letting the Pokemon appear: it was a funny-looking blue-skinned creature looking like a weird cross between a fish and a frog, with a somewhat overlarge head, a mouth that almost split his head in two, and orange star-shaped gills on his cheeks. His rotund head was surmouned by a large fin, and his tail was wide and flat, like a fish's. He had four short paws, and his azure colour became more intense on his belly and his lower jaw. He had a joyous, playful expression, and his eyes, who looked like a pair of coffee grains, were looking at his trainer with curiosity. With a kind smile, Max reached to his new Pokemon and petted him on his head, introducing himself.

"Hey! Hello, Mudkip!" he said. "Looks like we'll be partners from now on! I'm sure... we'll really get along with each other! What about it? Would you like to be friends with me?"

For a second, the small creature looked at his newfound trainer, as if wanting to burn his trainer's image in his mind... then, he started rubbing affectionately on his hand, like a kitten. Max chuckled and ran his hand on Mudkip's head.

"He looks like he's really cool with the idea, huh, Max?" May commented, reaching down and scratching Mudkip behind his head. "Hi, Mudkip! You know you're really cute?"

"_Mudkip!_" the Water Pokemon answered, opening his gills just a little. He looked somewhat embarassed by all the attention he was getting, and backed away a little from the girl.

"C'mon, sis, don't you see you're embarassing him? Be a little more delicate, won't you?" Max said, placing his hands protectively in front of his Mudkip. Professor Birch chuckled good-naturedly and gave a friendly tap on the shoulder to the glasses-wearing boy.

"Very well! I can see you and your Pokemon are already becoming friends, and that's a good start!" the researched said. "Now, Max, why don't you try taking your Mudkip for a stroll around? You know, just to make sure he gets accustomized to you..."

"_Mudkip?_" the smalll Pokemon asked, tilting his head, as Max raised his head and nodded.

"Yes, Professor Birch! You'll see, I'll be the best trainer I can be for Mudkip!" the newly-ordered trainer affirmed, holding his Pokemon in his arms. "Thank you... and I can ensure you I'll do my best!"

"And I will try to help my little brother as much as I can!" May answered. "Okay, I might not be the best teacher around... but I'll do all I can!"

"That's great, kids! I'm pleased to see you're that motivated!" the professor concluded. "Noww, you three, try to get along with each other... and I hope to receive news about you soon! Good luck, Max... I kinda have a hunch you and your Mudkip will be an unbeatable duo!"

"Thanks, Professor... we won't disappoint you!" Max answered, bowing as he an his sister took their leave. Even the last remaining trainers were choosing their starters, and some of them were standing in a line near Birch to ask him questions, so May and Max decided to make way for them and head to their first destination... the prairies around Littleroot Town, where Max could have started gaining confidence and experience with his starter Pokemon. "Okay, Mudkip, how about it? We could start by having a stroll together and getting to know each other better, what about it?"

The small Pokemon smiled and nodded in excitement! "_Mud! Kip!_" he chirped happily.

May couldn't help but smile to herself. At the very least, Max's Pokemon journey was off to a good start...

**oooooooooo**

"Really, girls, you didn't have to accompany me this far... I mean, you've got your job as Gym Leaders, after all, and I'm sorry for wasting your time." Zoey thanked as she dropped her backpack, standing in the line of people waiting for the ferry to Hoenn, the continent she wanted to continue her training journey in. Her two friends, Candice and Maylene, were with her, having travelled with her until the Canalave Town port to give her a proper goodbye. Still, Zoey felt a little guilty about her friends doing all that for her...

"Oh, don't worry about that, Zoey! It's no biggie, really!" Candice answered, waving her hands in front of her. "It was all a pleasure for us... and Candice could afford to leave her Gym for a while, anyway!"

"Right! It was no problem to us! After all, you are our friend, and we thought it was only right that we come to say goodbye to you!" Maylene answered.

Zoey chuckled a little at Candice's strange habit of talking about herself in third person. "Well, when you put it this way... anyway, I have to thank you for having accompained me here... and for the party you set up for me!"

"That was a pleasure as well!" Maylene answered, placing her hands behind her head. "Sure, it's too bad you didn't place first, but you came so close to that and you did so well that it's almost the same thing!"

"Thanks, girls! I'm gonna miss you when I'm there in Hoenn..." the redhead coordinator said, giving both Candice and Maylene an high-five. "Well, guess there will soon be the last passenger call for the ship, so... guess we'd better say goodbye now, don't you think so?"

"Yeah..." Candice answered, toying with one of her black pigtails. She was trying not to show how sad she was about her friend going away... "Candice just wants to say... Zoey, take care of yourself, and call us, from time to time!"

"We'll be waiting for news from you!" Maylene concluded. Zoey nodded, giving a thumbs-up to the pink-haired martial artist... and just then, an announcement was made from Canalave Port's speakers.

But, much to everybody's surprise, it wasn't the last call for the passengers boarding the ship to Hoenn...

"_ATTENTION. ATTENTION. TO ALL PASSENGERS ABOUT TO BOARD THE SHIP TO HOENN, DOCK 6. WE REGRET TO TELL YOU THAT, FOR MOTIVES NOT DEPENDANT ON OUR WILL, WE ARE FORCED TO CANCEL THE JOURNEY._"

The three girls widened their eyes in surprise. "What? What's this all about? We heard nothing of this until now..." Candice exclaimed... and, as if he had heard her disappointment, the speaker went on.

"_WE HAVE JUST NOW RECEIVED A REPORT ABOUT AN EXTREMELY VIOLENT SEA STORM WHICH SUDDENTLY VERIFIED IN THE OCEAN BETWEEN SINNOH AND HOENN. THERE WAS LITTLE TO NO BUILDUP NOR WARNING, AND IT WAS THOUGHT MORE PRUDENT TO SUSPEND ALL DEPARTURES TO HOENN. THE SHIP TO HOENN IS THEREFORE POSTPONED TO TOMORROW EVENING, AT THE SAME HOUR. WE APOLOGIZE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE, AND WE'LL TRY TO REMEDY THIS AS SOON AS WE CAN. THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION._"

"What? A storm so violent they've decided to interrupt all sea travel to Hoenn?" Zoey asked herself as she took a look to the enormous passenger ship. It looked quite sturdy and resistant, which made Zoey wonder just how bad this storm was, if the company didn't even trust such a ship to brave the seas. "And... it built itself up in so little time? That's strange... not even the weather service could see that coming?"

"Candice... doesn't have the foggiest idea, Zoey, it all sounds strange to her as well." a perplexed Candice answered, as the passengers began walking away, murmuring unhappily. "After all, Candice lives in a place where weather is somewhat mutable, and I know a thing or two about when weather changes... so I don't see how they could not predict that!"

"And now... what to do, Zoey?" Maylene asked.

Zoey shrugged, accepting there was not much to do. "Well, not much, actually. I'll stay here, take a room in a hotel, and tomorrow morning I'm getting back here." the redhead answered. "You two can start going back home if you want, I'm definitely not going to hold you here."

"But we are the ones wanting to stay here with you, Zoey! We're not leaving you alone!" Maylene exclaimed, clenching a fist in front of her.

Candice giggled and gave her answer. "Candice agrees with Maylene. We've only been away for a few days, and one more won't make any difference!" she said. "And, while we're at it, we can take a look around, all together! It's such a bore to stay here alone!"

"Actually, I don't really mind... but I really appreciate the thought! Thanks a lot, girls!" Zoey answered. "Okay... since I'm not going anywhere for the day, what do you propose to do?"

"Why don't we take a look around for some cute little shop?" Candice proposed, smiling like a happy child. "Canalave City is not the biggest city in Sinnoh, that's true, but there are quite a few nice shops around here! And if we find some nice dress, we can see about buying it! What about it, Maylene, wouldn't you like it?"

"Candice, you know I'm not into dresses... or such things!" the small pink-haired Gym Leader answered, looking somewhat alarmed. She was still wearing her usual blue sweater with baggy long pants. "You know I'm okay with my training suit!"

The Ice Pokemon expert wanted nothing of this, though. With an almost too enthusiastic smile, she grabbed her friend by the arm and began dragging her away from the deck, holding her in a grip from which even the young martial artist found it difficult to wriggle free from! "Oh no, little Maylene, you don't palm me off with that excuse! Heheheee... you already used it too many times already, and Candice will not fall for that again!" she said, giggling almost sadistically! Whenever either fashion or Pokemon battles were brought up, Candice could get quite hotblooded, ironically enough. "So, you're now coming with us and trying a few dresses like all the girls in this world do! And you might even choose a nice little pair of shoes, huh?"

A pair of comical streams of tears came down from Maylene's eyes, as she tried and failed to get away from Candice's grab! "Noooo! Not shoes, you know I hate theeeem!" she protested.

"Oh, quit whining, lil' Maylene! You can do a little sacrifice from time to time for your friends, can't you?" Candice giggled. Zoey simply stood there, watching her friends jokingly quarrel with each other... and then chuckled herself, picked up her backpack and shook her head, following after them and thanking fate for giving her friends such as those two. Apart from them and Dawn, there weren't many people Zoey could really call friends...

"Seriously, girls... what does one have to do with you?" the red-headed coordinator sighed.

Farther in the line, a pretty little girl with peach-colored hair done in a pair of spiral-like curls at the sides of her head, with a snobbish and somewhat arrogant expression on her face, sighed angrily as she retrieved her own backpack. That really was bad luck, Ursula thought as she went back on her way... just when she was about to depart to Hoenn, this happened and she was forcedto stay there. And to think this would have been a great chance to see another continent's coordinators and get more training.

"Hmph... that can't be helped, I guess..." the pretty coordinator grumbled, twirling one of her peach-colored curls on the fingers of her right hand. "I don't like waiting, but I don't have much of a choice either... well, now that I'm stuck here, what am I supposed to do?"

Sighing angrily, Ursula sat down on a bench and opened up the guidebook she had brought with her. As she looked at the pages, flipping them with her index finger, the young coordinator was trying to think of a way to pass the time until the next morning, when hopefully she could board the ferry... and, much to her disappointment, she found nothing of interest. "Meh... such bad luck, being stuck in such a boring city. I guess it would be too much to ask for something interesting to see, huh? Whatever... I'll go back to the hotel, and see if I can train my Pokemon a little..."

Ursula placed her backpack on her shoulders and headed towards the exit of the port, zigzagging among the crowd. She was feeling like she was out of place, there... with all those people quickly walking beside her, without paying attention to what happened around them, Ursula felt like she was the only one really trying to mind where she was going. After all, she thought with a shrug, that was nothing new... she had always felt somewhat superior to most of the people around her, only allowing a select few to get to know her personally...

The young girl frowned, surprised at what she was doing. Since whendid she stop and think about her attitude and the way she looked at others? She sighed and shook her head, realizing that she was more prone to stopping and thinking, after being defeated at the Sinnoh Grand Festival. Maybe it was because she had more time to actually stop and reflect? Still, she decided that it was just not worth it to be sitting there and sulk about it wouldn't have done her any good, and decided to go back to her hotel room. The next day would be a better day... or at least, that's what she was hoping, not knowing how much her life would be changed in a short while.

Along with the lives of many others...

**oooooooooo**

Still, somewhere else, other plans were being drawn up, of a much more sinister nature. In a richly furnished office, in Viridian City's biggest and most luxurious estate, a man wih a cold and ruthless demeanor, harsh features and short, neatly-combed black hair was reading a bunch of reports from his informants around the world, while petting a beautiful, purring Persian laying nearby, whose tail was slowly moving back and forth in contentment. Giovanni, the mysterious leader of team Rocket and quite possibly the richest man in Kanto, could see once more that having an organized network of spies in all of the world's continents, maintainted through undercover operation and careful manipulations and movements of money, had a lot of perks... not the least of which, being able to regularly get a list of potential recruits with which to swell the numbers of his organization. Recently, after staying inactive and undercover for awhile, Team Rocket could now come back, with even more abundance of both money and personnel... and now, Giovanni knew that the time was right for them to make their move!

"Very well... despite those three idiots failing time and again, the remainder of my organization keeps working well!" he said to himself. "It looks like I'll be buried in a lot more work for a while, but it will be worth it in the end! On that topic, I should check if she's back..."

Giovanni pushed a button on his left, activating a communication line from which a female voice was heard, though slightly distorted by the device. "_Yes, sir... please, tell me, is anything the matter?_"

"No problem at all, miss." the rich businessman answered. "I just wanted to ask whether Domino has come back from her latest assignment."

"_She has, sir... about one hour ago, in fact._" the voice answered. "_I was just about to call you about her return to the base. Do you wish for her to be sent to your office, right now?_"

"No, thanks... I just wanted to know if she's available." Giovanni answered, smirking to himself once more. "Just tell her to be ready for my call, as I suspect I will need her services soon."

"_Very well, sir... we will communicate that to her at once._" the female voice answered. With a nod, Giovanni pushed the button again and ended the conversation, once again returning to his papers. The head of Team Rocket had a feeling things could not be going better at the moment... it was finally time to make their move!

"Excellent... soon enough, Team Rocket will show the world a true demonstration of power!" he told himself, still stroking his spoiled Persian's fur, causing the cat Pokemon to meow in satisfaction. "We just need to be patient... and we will finally reap the fruit of all our hard work!"

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Hehehee... yeah, so it seems that there are a few people out there who do not have the best interests of humans and Pokemon in mind. And we've seen a familiar face pretty much come back from the dead! Or was she, after all? It all will be slowly revealed in future chapters, so bear with me a little, and you will get all the answers!**

**As for Max... well, I thought it was high time for him to start his Pokemon journey as well! I, for one, am not a fan of keeping Ash as a 10-year-old throughout the series, so in this story you will at least get a feeling of passing time.**

**That's pretty much it for now... next chapter, the plot will start thickening, with Legendary Pokemon on the line, and rival criminal teams on the move! I will be updating this story after the 5th of January, as I will be going on vacation soon, and I won't be able to write for a while... but as soon as I'm back, both this story and my Super Robot Wars story will be updated at a much faster pace, hopefully!**

**That's it for now! Ciao! And please, review!**

**Lily**


	7. Everyday Life In Kanto

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Welcome back to my story! I apologize for taking so much time to update, but not having access to a computer for a while tends to put a crimp on your updating plans. Anyway... this will be a welcome chapter for a lot of you, considering that some very beloved characters from the earlier Pokemon series will show up again, and some more of the story's background will be revealed. But let's not spoil too much for the moment, okay? I'll let you find things out by yourself, so... enjoy the chapter, and hopefully I did a good enough job!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 7 - Everyday Life In Kanto**

"Hmmm... the weather looks quite strange today, I have to say..." Delia Ketchum, a still youthful-looking woman in her early forties, with long red-brown hair tied behind her head, commented as she exited her small home, looking at the sky. Pallet Town was usually blessed with a fine weather, with the sea only a few kilometres away, and the sun shining for the better part of the year. Therefore, seeing a bunch of huge clouds appearing in the skies, promising bad weather, was rather unusual, especially for that time of the year.

Delia reminded herself to watch out for the all too real possibility of rain and bring indoors the clothes she had hung outside, then she stepped out of her home's gate, waving to her Mr. Mime domestic helper. The clown-like Psychic Pokemon, who was busy sweeping the entrance steps, waved back at her.

"_Mime!_" he greeted energically. For her part, Delia bowed eleganlty to her Mr. Mime.

"Good morning, Mimy! I see you're already working so early in the morning, as usual!" Delia greeted. "Still, you don't have to do all that work, today... I kinda have a hunch that the weather will get worse in a few days, so sweeping everywhere will not be necessary. Yu can take a break today, can't you?"

The Pokemon did a funny military salute. "_Mr. Mime!_" he answered, before getting back to work all the same, although more slowly this time. Delia waved at him again and went out of the gate, then she started calmly walking towards the small town's market, crossing the road passing near a rather well-known place... the laboratory in which Professor Samuel Oak, one of the world's greatest authorities for what concerns Pokemon, was still conducting his research.

Delia sighed, somewhat melanchonically. Little more than four years had passed since Ash had started his Pokemon journey, and since the day she had seen him depart - late, as one might imagine - for Oak's lab in order to receive his starter Pokemon: the very same Pikachu who had given him nothing but grief earlier on, and that Ash had instead almost risked his life for. To think how far those two had come together... only a few days ago, Delia and her Mr. Mime had watched the Sinnoh League finals, in which Ash had defeated that purple-haired bully. Even if she did feel sad at times about how far away her son was, she was still proud of the fact that Ash had reached those levels of skill and had found his way.

At that moment, Delia heard the unmistakeable sound of a bike approaching at moderate speed, and turned in that direction to see Professor Oak slowing down and stopping near her, riding his old but still functioning and rustless bicycle. The famed Pokemon researcher was an elderly gentleman just a little above his sixties, with a still youthful edge to his demeanor and a sharp intellect, also thanks to the studies he was immersed in practically every day. Now that even his grandson Gary, Ash's childhood friend and former rival, was takking part in his research, Oak had seemingly made some promising discoveries.

"Oh, good morning, Delia!" the professor greeted. "How are you? You seem to be doing fine, these days."

"I could say thesame about you, professor Oak!" the young mother greeted back with a smile. "Still... yes, you could say that, and above all I'm very happy about Ash winning his first official tournament! What about you, professor? Is your work proceeding smoothly?"

"Yes, for now, we haven't met any particular problem!" Oak answered. "Even my grandson Gary is making some huge progresses, and he's aiding me a lot with mt research! It's just that... well... recently, some peculiar events seem to be taking place."

Delia slightly tilted her head on one side in confusion. "Peculiar, professor? What do you mean by that?"

Oak cleared his voice. "Ah-ehm... the truth of the matter, Delia, is that I've heard some strange news from Cinnabar Island."

"Oh, sure... that volcanic island in the southern seas, where there is also one of Kaanto's eight official Gyms. The one led by professor Blaine, a Fire-type expert, if I recall correctly."

Oak nodded. "And indeed you do recall correctly, Delia. Exactly, I'm talking about that. Recently, some strange happening have been springing up around those places. It all started this winter, when I received news that unusual levels of rain and snow had been reported around those parts. Of course, rain and snow are nothing out of the ordinary, but considering that it's a region quite close to the Equator, it is rather peculiar that it snowed at all."

"Well, in fact, it has been some time since it last snowed in Cinnabar Island..." Delia thought out loud. "It's always been a place with a pleasant climate, even during the winter. But still, this could have been a simple coincidence."

"That's right, Delia. As you rightly put it, a single phenomenon cannot be considered the symptom of a problem." the scientist answered. "So, the first time I heard of this, I thought it was an unusual happening, but that things would be stopped there. However, these strange happening have not yet stopped, and they're spreading further, to affect Fuxia City, the Seafoam Islands and even the Sevii Islands."

"Sevii Islands? You mean, those seven islands near the Equator?" Delia asked, just to have a confirmation. "I read a few things about those islands, and they seem to be quite popular... in fact, I've heard one of the Kanto League Elite Four was born in one of these islands. But other than this, I don't know much about those islands."

"Exactly... I'm talking about those... in particular, the inhabitants of both those islands and Cinnabar Islands have recently been hit by numerous minor earthquakes, and the volcanoes lying dormant in those zones seem to be about to awaken. The authorities are already standing guard, and the population has been given warning of the possible eruption... but all these unusual events, at such short time intervals between each other, are giving me quite a lot to think about."

Miss Ketchum couldn't help but agree. A single unusual event coul probably be dismissed as unimportant, but now that strange happenings were springing up so quickly, things couldn't just be ignored like that. At least the volcanoes were awakening slowly and gradually, giving the population fair warning.

"I would be lying if I said that I and Gary were not concerned over such events." Oak want on. "Recently, I've been conducting further research to figure out what's really happening, and I hope I can make sense of the whole situation before a serious problem springs up. Anyway... there is also the possibility that things could go back to normal on their own, which I hope will be the case."

"Me too... I wouldn't want those people to be forced to abandon their homes and go somewhere else... I dare not imagine how terrible it would be for them." Delia anwered, casting her glance to the greyish-white clouds slowly floating to the horizon...

**oooooooooo**

Somewhere else, in the Cerulean City Gym, such worries seemed to be well away from the audience cheering for the Sensational Sisters who were performing just then... together with their younger sister Misty, now playing the part of a fascinating red-haired mermaid, and by her Pokemon Horsea, Starmie and Corsola! As always, the synchronized swimming performance of the three older sisters, and the youngest sister's skill as a Pokemon trainer had left the audience in awe... which probably also had something to do with the fact that they were four fascinating young ladies in revealing swimsuits!

In any event, the net result was another round of applause and ovation for the four sisters, who had just then headed back to the locker rooms among applauses and catcalls. Once again, their skills had left a good impression on everyone!

"Aaaah! Nothing more exciting than hearing the audience cheer you on after all those weeks of rehearsal!" Violet exclaimed giddily as she toweled her long purple hair. "Aren't you excited about that as well, girls? Maybe next time we should do that Gyarados performance we have been talking about recently... after all, our little sister is not afraid of them any more, is she?"

The purplenette winked at Misty, who had just then got back in her 'civilian' clothes: yellow top and shorts giving her a dynamic, tomboyish appearence, red trainers and her bright red hair tied in a side ponytail. Immediately, the redhead wrinkled her nose, giving her sisters a mock-threatening glare. "Hey, Violet, just because I am not afraid of Gyaradoses any more, doesn't mean I like them either!" she replied, "What's with you and deciding things for me? Sheesh..."

The three older sister chuckled in amusement. "Hehee... now, Misty, we were just joking!" Daisy answered. "By the way, what about your plans for the next days, huh? Are you really sure you don't wanna get some... time off?"

Misty blinked in confusion. "Hmm? What... are you talking about, Daisy?"

The other two Sensational Sisters' ears had perked up at Daisy's question, and now all three of them were approaching Misty with teasing smiles on their faces. "Heheheee... you know you can't fool us, little sis, we know you all too well for that!" Lily giggled. "We saw how excited you were the other day when you saw your... friend... winning the Sinnoh championship!"

Misty's face immediately took on a hue similar to that of her hair, and the youngest of the four sisters stepped back, her eyes comically wide and looking elsewhere. "Huh? And... huh... this has to do with me... how, exactly? Can't a girl be happy when her friend has won a big tourney?"

Her clumsy attempts at hiding the truth could not fool the older sisters. "Oh, so you're just happy that he won? You sure this is all there is, sister dear?" Violet chuckled, getting dangerously close to Misty and looking at her straight in the eyes. "'Cause, you see, I believe that now the first thing your... friend... does," and Misty caught the particular emphasis given to the penultimate word. "will be to head back home for a while, in Pallet Town, to get some well-deserved rest. And, well, this could be the right time to see him again, after so much time!"

Misty's reaction was as predictable as it was immediate - her pretty face became inequivocably, completely crimson! "Wha... what? What... are you trying to say, for crying out loud?" she exclaimed, droplets of sweat spraying comically around her. "For your information, sisters dearest, and this is probably the thousandth time I'm telling you this... I was travelling with Ash because he and his Pikachu had busted my bike, and he had to reimburse me! That's all!"

The oldest trick in the book. The three Sensational Sisters had heard that excuse far too many times not to know that it was a facade...

"But, if I recall correctly, he never gave that bike back, did he?" Violet clarified with visible pleasure, causing Misty to murmur something unintelligible under her breath. "In the end, you chose to stay with us in the Gym, and you pretty much forgot about the bike. So... how are you going to explain this, sister dear? This excuse has grown old!"

"Ugh... you and your 'sharp intuitions'..." Misty murmured, turning the other way. Sisters or not, Misty hated how they always seemed to know which buttons to push in order to embarass her.

Daisy sighed and shook her head. Really, her sister could be so stubborn when she put her mind to that... maybe that was also the reason why she had become such a great Pokemon trainer, after all! "C'mon, Mist, we're your big sisters, right? We have known you since the day you were born... so don't think you can deceive us with these silly excuses, heheheee..." she giggled briefly. "But, jokes aside, Misty, are you really sure you don't want to take a... vacation, so to speak... and go to Pallet Town to meet him? For what concerns the Gym, we can take care of it! After all, we did just that when you were away with Ash and Brock."

Sure, Misty thought with some melanchony, she would be lying if she said she didn't want to see her old friend and travelling companion... but once they would be face to face, how was she going to act? So much time had passed since she and Ash last saw each other... who knows if he even remembered her, at this point...

After thinking about it for a while, Misty sighed and turned slightly towards her sisters, without fully facing them. She obviously didn't want them to read her emotions in her face. "Really, girls, I don't know about that... I'm kinda split on this." she answered, trying not to grasp at excuses. "I... well... how to say... I'll admit, I'd really love to see him again... but... I mean, so much time went by since I last saw him, and I don't know if... er... really, how much things might have changed between us. And I don't know if he even remembers me and what we went through in our journey. You know what I'm saying, right?"

Violet smiled warmly and put an hand on Misty's head, ruffling her hair. "Yeah, yeah, we know, little sis! We know what you're trying to say... even if you're so stubborn, you're also pretty shy when it comes to certain topics!"

"I will... pretend not to have heard that, big sis..." Misty murmured as she tried to comb her hair back into place.

"C'mon, Mist, Violet was just joking!" Daisy laughed. "But... well, you understand what she was trying to say, right? Sometimes, in our lives, we get these chances that we need to be able to grasp. If we don't do so, and we waste our time just thinking about what might hapen if we were to step forward... well, we'd end up wasting our chances! And I don't think it's a good thing to live in regret of what we might have been able to do."

"After all, you and Ash are friends all the same, right? Before everything else, remember that you spent months on end travelling through Kanto, the Orange Islands and Johto." Lily added. "So, I'm sure he will be happy to see you as well! Therefore, little sis, don't think too hardabout it, and go meet him! I'm sure he will appreciate it!"

Misty sighed again and looked at thefloor, thinking back of the old times when she was travelling allong with Ash and Brock, foiling Team Rocket's hare-brained traps and incredible dangers... Mewtwo, the mad collector Lawrence III and his obsession with capturing Kanto's Legendary Birds, the Unown Tower... both happy and sad memories that made up the best part of her life, which she never really cast behind her. A small part of her was still hoping that, one day, she and her friends could meet again, even for just a little while... at least long enough to tell each other of their own lives, and maybe... with a little luck... live another adventure all together, just like old times...

In the end, Misty was seriously considering the idea of accepting her older sisters' proposal... however, she was still not one hundred per cent sure, mostly because of the gym this time. "Well, when you put it this way, maybe... but are you sure you can handle both the gym and the performances?"

"Heheheee... our little sister does not know us as well as we know her, it seems!" Lily answered happily, giving Misty a small pat on her shoulder. "Don't underestimate us, Mist! As we said, if we managed to do both things when you were away... and you've been away a long time... I don't see why we can't do that now! We've been studying a bit of Pokemon battling ourselves, and we've been training quite a bit! Sure we don't have your talent for battling, but we can definitelt hold our own! You'll see, our challengers won't have it easy!"

Thiss time, Misty was fully convinced, and gave her sister a bright, thankful smile. "I... I see! Alright, then, you convinced me! I'll try and see when the ships from Sinnoh arrive in Vermillion City, and... I'll make sure I'm ready to show Ash and Brock a nice surprise as soon as they're back!"

"Now that's talking, little sis!" Violet exclaimed. "And remember, try to have him tell you everything, down to the tiniest details! You know how boys are, a girl's got to always keep a short leash on them!"

"Violet!" Misty protested as she struggled to get free of her sister's energetic noogie. "You and your suspicions... I'm telling you once again, I and Ash are just friends! And that's all there is to it! I don't know how you manage to come up with such ideas..."

Daisy and Lily whispered something in each other's ears and giggled, one hand in front of their mouths, as Misty sighed in resignation... and silently thanked fate for having given her such annoying yet supportive older sisters...

Finally, after so much time, she was going to see again two of her dearest friends. Who knows how the reunion would have been... Misty was eager to discover that for herself...

**oooooooooo**

"Electivire. Use a Thunder attack, now."

This firm-sounding, emotionless order was immediately followed by Paul's massive Electric Pokemon charging himself as much as he could, and then unleashing all of his electric power in a huge spark that struck a pair of trees, charring both their bark and their leaves before sizzling out, leaving an exhausted, wheezing Electivire behind. That attack had left him almost completely spent, and the Electric Pokemon secretly hoped that his trainer, despite being known for his hars training methods, would just call it a day...

Luckily for him, that was exactly what Paul decided a second later. Always keeping his severe expression, the violet-haired boy recalled Electivire in his Pokeball. "Hm. Not bad at all. I wasn't expecting any less, anyway. That's enough for today." he said, almost going as far as to compliment his Pokemon. As Paul put the Pokeball back in its place, he stood there and looked at the results of his Pokemon's attack. He had to say, they were noticeable, but he still thought they were falling short of Electivire's real potential.

"Hmm... that's still not it. If I want to compete in the next Sinnoh league, I need to do more than strengthen my Pokemon... I also need to make up new strategies and new ways to use their moves." he told himself. "And I won't get much of a chance here in Sinnoh. Most trainers are either too weak or too strong for me. I need to find a place full of strong Pokemon which would force me and my team to our extremes. The question is, where?"

That was an issue for Paul... he couldn't just let that defeat slide, just when he was so close to becoming the champion, and at the hands of the Pokemon he had deemed weak and useless. It was a major blow to his personal beliefs, and to his own pride as well.

The young trainer stopped to think for a while, glaring at the charred trees... and then, he allowed himself to relax a little, and allowed himself a barely visible smile. "Hm. I think I've got it. If what I heard about that place is true, that might just be the training field I need for my Pokemon." he told himself. "Alright then... I'll start doing some research tomorrow, and I'll see whether what they say about that place is true."

His demeanor turned grim, as he once again thought of his defeat. "My team will get a lot better after this training. And next time I and Ash Ketchum will face each other, I will be the winner." he muttered, before turning and walking away, his eyes burning with determination and his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Mount Silver... I really want to see how it is."

**oooooooooo**

Finally, after a few days of travel, Ash, Pikachu, Dawn and Brock had arrived in Canalave Town, where the ship to Kanto was waiting for them... and at that moment, the youngest members of the team, together with their trademark Pikachu and Piplup, were sitting on a bench near the ticket office, waiting for their older companion to buy the tickets. After waiting in a line for a little while, Brock had managed to buy three tickets for the earliest departing ship the following morning.

"Okay, guys, here I am!" Brock said as he returned to Ash and Dawn, tickets in hand. "There is a ship to Kanto tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, which will arrive in Vermilion City after seven hours of travel. From there it really shouldn't take long for us to be back in Pallet!"

"Yeah... Vermilion City, that was when I and Pikachu were up against Lt. Surge and his Raichu!" Ash said, recalling that climatic battle, at the beginning of his trainer's carreer, with a bit of nostalgia. "It was one of the greatest battles I had in Kanto... man, if I think of how reckless I was then, it makes my head spin!"

"By the way, how did it go?" A curious Dawn asked. "Did you really go up against a Raichu by using just your Pikachu, back then?"

"Exactly..." Ash answered, as his inseparable electric mouse friend stood on his hind legs, hands on his hips, and nodded sagely. "I though I and Pikachu could defeat Surge's Raichu by attacking head-on, without thinking of a strategy... but when Raichu easily defeated Pikachu, we understood we were doing it wrong. We had to work up a strategy... and in the end, we figured out Raichu's weak point, and used that towin!"

"_Pika pika!_" Pikachu nodded, still feeling proud for that victory.

"I remember that battle myself..." Brock affirmed as he handed the tickets to the kids. "That was when I really saw that Ash had the potential to become a real Pokemon master, although his battle against me, in Pewter City Gym, had been quite impressive already! By the way, since we're going back to Kanto, I probably need to pay a visit to the Gym... and I hope there won't be problems..."

"Problems?" Ash asked dubiously. "Why, what kind of problems should there be?"

"Oh, it's just a rumour I heard while I was in queue for the tickets..." Brock answered, trying not to put too much importance on what he had heard. After all, as far as he knew, it could all be simply a temporary problem. "Still, I heard there have been some violent sea storms in the ocean between Sinnoh and Hoenn... violent to the point where all traveling between those two regions has been suspended. Which is strange, because those ships are really huge, and it would take a really terrifying storm to put one in danger..."

"You're right..." a slightly worried Dawn agreed. "One has to hope it doesn't happen to us..."

"Yeah, me too..." Ash went on. "Though I guess they will warn us if that happen. Anyway, no use getting worried over nothing! How about we phone our families and let them know where we're going?"

"You're right, since we have that chance now..." Dawn answered, before pointing a finger to a group of public phones. "We can call them from there!"

"That's a good idea, and two of those phones just happen to be vacant. Ash, Dawn, you can go first." Brock commented as the group stood up and walked to the public phones. The younger trainers nodded and went to one telephone each, inserting a phone card and composing their own home number. They didn't have to wait long before their respective mothers came to answer...

"_Hello?_" Delia Ketchum answered, grabbing the phone as soon as her young-looking face appeared on the display in front of Ash. "_Hey, Ash! What a nice surprise! Are you doing alright, my dear? I saw you on TV the other day, at the finals! You did a splendid job!_"

"Hi, Mom!" Ash answered, smiling hugely as Pikachu waved at her. "Hehehee... yeah, I have to say me and my Pokemon did alright! All those lessons we have learned paid off in the end!"

"_Pikachu! Pika pika, pikachu!_" Pikachu squeaked.

Delia chuckled good-naturedly. "_Well, you did take a bit of time to learn from them... Just joking, you were terrific there, it was a well earned win! Everyone in Pallet Town is enthusiastic about it... they say it's great that a trainer from here had upheld Kanto's honor in the Sinnoh conference_!"

"Thanks, Mom! Even I and Pikachu are happy about winning!" Ash answered. "And speaking of which, the reason I called was also to tell you that I, Pikachu, Brock... and a friend we have met here in Sinnoh... will be coming back to Pallet Town to get a brief vacation... and to see what's new around there! I guess that, with all the time I've spent away from home, something must have changed!"

Delia's face lit up in joy. "_Of course, my dear! I'm always glad when you come back to visit! And as for your friend from Sinnoh, she's welcome as well, of course! I will be pleased to meet her and show her our country! By the way, Mimy would like to say hello to you as well! Look, he's right here_!"

She stepped aside for a moment, allowing the mime Pokemon to show up on the phone's screen and wave at Ash and Pikachu with his huge glowed hand. "_Mr. Mime!_" the Psychic-type Pokemon greeted.

"_Pikachu!_" Pikachu quickly answered, his long ears standing upright. Ash chuckled to himself for the funny exchange between the two Pokemon before resuming his talk.

"Well then, Mom... if it's alright with you, we'll take the next ferry to Kanto, and we'll reach you as soon as we can in Pallet Town!" Ash said triumphantly. "I really want to see you, Gary, Tracey and Professor Oak again... and to introduce Dawn to all of you!"

"_I'd be happy to!_" Delia answered. "_And even Professor Oak will! By the way, I think he needs to talk to you about something important, so you coming back home would be the ideal chance..._"

"Of course." Ash answered, wondering what the problem might be. "Alright, Mom, we'll be departing tomorrow, and we'll come as soon as we can so... just wait for us, okay? Bye, Mom, love you!"

"_Me too, Ash! See you soon_!" Delia answered before the communication ceased, and the videophone's screen went blank once again.

Meanwhile, the conversation between Dawn and her mother had gone more or less along those same lines, with Dawn politely asking her mother for permission to follow Ash and Brock in their own continent. The blue-haired girl was fervently hoping for an affirmative answer, and she knew that her mother was quite open-minded about that... but it was still a journey to another continent they were talking about, and it must not have been the easiest thing in the world for a parent to agree to that...

"So, Mom... I, Ash and Brock thought it would have been a good idea for me to go to Kanto with them... I could see a few new gyms, know new trainers, and gain more experience for my future contests." Dawn explained, hoping not to trip on her own words. She wanted to come across as convinced, since it was a very important occasion for her...

Johanna stood silent for a short while... then, much to her daughter's surprise, she raises her eyes, smiled and nodded. "Alright, then, dear! You have my approval and can go to Kanto with Ash and Brock! I think it will be a very good learning experience for you, and it will still be a way to stay with your good friends, so... I'm okay with you going to Kanto!"

"Really? I can?" Dawn exclaimed, her face beaming with joy. "Oh, thanks, Mommy, you're an angel! I'm so happy you gave me permission, so... I promise I won't do anything stupid, and I'll call you regularly! No need to worry!"

Johanna chuckled. "You know, dear, that it's when you say that that I start worrying..." she answered, to which Dawn grit her teeth and made a comical grimace. That was a poor choice of words... but luckily, Johanna did not seem to mind that. "Just kidding, Dawn, don't be alarmed! I know you've become aresponsible and independent girl! I still can't believe how far you've come!"

"Dunno whether I should be flattered or worried..." Dawn joked. "Anyway... thanks a lot, Mom, and don't worry! I know I'll be okay even in another continent! And as I said, I'll call you often, so... you can be sure everything will be alright!"

"Glad to know that!" Johanna concluded. "So, dear... I don't think I have anything more to say to you other than... enjoy your time with your friends, learn as much as you can, and... well, all this sort of things! I love you, Dawn... best wishes to you!"

"Thanks, Mom! To you as well!" Dawn answered before the communication was interrupted. The blue-haired girl set the phone down and turned to her friends, seeing that Ash had already finished his call. "Well, that's about it! There weren't any problems, and we can go to Kanto without any worries. Brock, have you heard anything on the weather?"

"Luckily, there doesn't seem to be any problem about that." the Rock Pokemon trainer answered. "The broadcast for tomorrow talks about smooth sailing and calm sea, so... now we have nothing more to do than find a place to spend the night, and get some rest. We're in for a long journey tomorrow... remember, our ferry is from Dock 7, tomorrow at 9 o'clock... so we have to wake up on time. We'll get to Kanto only in the late afternoon."

"Yeah, Kanto is quite far from here..." Ash recalled. As the trio and Pikachu headed towards the exit, they were oblivious to a group of mysterious individuals in trenchcoat and fedora hat sitting near the entrance, their faces hidden by the newspapers they were reading... behind which, their eyes were intently following Ash and Pikachu!

"Well, guys? You heard them, right?" the smallest of the trio asked in a nasal voice, peeking out of the newspaper's page. "Looks like the twerps are going back home... that oughta make things easier for us, doncha think?"

"Could be, Meowth..." a female voice, belonging to a familiar-looking fuxia-haired girl, answered. "We'll be pretty much playing on our home turf! It will be much easier to catch Pikachu and bring him to the boss..."

"But there's another problem to take care of..." James timidly stated. "How do we embark on that ship? We don't have much money, and we can't afford to spend much on tickets..."

"And our pride as criminals keeps us from doing something as honest as buying a ticket!" Jessie replied, wrinkling her nose. "But... don't worry, you two! I think I already have an idea on how to do it, and I'm sure it will work to perfection!"

"Should I start prayin, Jessie, or should I go straight for our last wills?" Meowth snarked, remaining indifferent as Jessie glared daggers at him.

"Grrr... why don't you close that big mouth of yours, Meowth?" the fuxia-haired girl growled. "Anyway, as I was saying... this time I got it all under control! We'll get to Kanto no problem, and then we'll get Pikachu... and get our prize from the boss!"

"Shouldn't we just get Pikachu during the journey?" James asked. "You know, just to make it faster..."

"To make it faster in blasting off again, you twit!" Jessie repriminded him. "On the ship, we have no chance of getting away in time! They will find us and give us the usual routine of getting blown sky high! No, we need to be patient, James... our efforts will be rewarded in the end! We'll use the time we have during our journey to think of a good attack plan... and then, we'll catch the twerps and their Pikachu off guard!"

"Heheee... have to say, Jessie, for once I really think your plan just might work!" Meowth concluded, as the clumsy criminal trio tried to get away without drawing too much attention on themselves...

**oooooooooo**

A few hours later.

"Have to say, this hotel might not be super-luxury, but it's still very nice!" Ash commented as he relaxed on a chair, as he and his friend were sitting around a table, enjoying a spectacular vista on Canalave Port, with breakers spectacularly washing over the reef, and the fragrant smell of saltwater in their nostrils. In the end, Ash and his friend had chosen an hotel near the coast, where they could spend the night in peace, and allow their Pokemon to get a good night's sleep as well. In fact, a few metres away from them, their Pokemon had been let out of their Pokeballs and were now playing around in a specially devised play area, with Togekiss and Sceptile watching over them.

"Yeah... there's even a place where our Pokemon can have all the fun they want!" Dawn commented as she looked in amusement at her Pachirisu riding on the massive Mamoswine. The small electric squirrel was taking advantage of the enormous boar's Ground / Ice type to shock him from time to time as to make him hurry... which Mamoswine only registered as a slight tickle. Further still, Heracross was carrying Piplup and Pikachu on his shoulders, while Brock's Sudowoodo was using his Mimic to improvise a funny show for the other Pokemon!

"It's a really nice place... and, I have to say, I'm gonna miss Sinnoh." Brock comented. "We did live a lot of great adventures here... and yet, I and Ash have been away from our homes from quite a long time, and we'd like to come back at least for a while."

"Right... and about that..." Ash answered, drawing Dawn's curious stare. "Y'know, Dawn, four years ago I started my journey wanting to become a Pokemon Master... but during all these travels, I kinda fear I lost my goal, and I've ended up fighting... just for the sake of fighting. Now... I would like to return to my new goal and think of what I have to do to get it. You see what I mean?"

"Sure I do..." Dawn answered, thinking how much Ash's position resembled her own. She did want to become a world-famous coordinator, but other than the first steps she had taken, she was unsure of what to do now... "And... well, know that since you've helped me when I was trying to make my dream come true, I will aid in making yours come true! You can count on me!"

Ash smiled, appreciating Dawn's will to help... but before he could add anything else, a notorious aristocratic and arrogant voice inserted herself in the conversation. "A... Pokemon Master, huh? This is news to me."

Immediately, the three of them turned to the source of the voice... and there they saw Ursula walking up to them, arms crossed on her chest and nose slightly tilted in the air. Dawn greeted her rival first with a nod of her head. "Oh... is that you, Ursula? What a surprise, imagine meeting you here of all places..." she said, frowning a little.

The peach-haired girl shrugged. "I wasn't expecting it myself, so I guess we're even." she said curtly. "I was here to take a ship to Hoenn, but with the rough sea conditions, the ferry has been postponed. Anyway... becoming a Pokemon Master, huh? That's quite a feat. I saw your performance in the Sinnoh tournament, and I have to say, I was quite impressed. Your team is strong and well-trained... but you'll need a lot more than that to get this title. I hope for your sake you know what you're getting into."

"Er... If I have to be frank here, I don't know how to become a Pokemon Master..." the Pallet Town boy answered candidly, causing Ursula to frown. "I've never thought much about it... and now that I have some free time, I'd like to think it over and try to understand how to reach my goal."

Ursula seemed to think about that for a moment. "Hmph... well, you know where you stand, at the very least." she answered. "If I were you, I'd try to contact one of Kanto's Elite Four, since you're going there. I'm pretty sure they already know you've won the Sinnoh tournament, and they can give you better advice."

Dawn smiled at Ursula, which annoyed the more elegant coordinator. "Hm? What now... Dee-dee? You think I said something ridiculous?"

"No, it's not that, Ursula!" Dawn answered, further irritating Ursula with her cheerfulness. "It's just that... well, you're showing that you're actually a nice person and a good friend. Thank you for your advice!"

Ursula wrinkled her nose. "Hmph... do not get strange ideas, Dee-dee, because I still don't consider you my friends. And I still don't think you're at my level, even though I accept that I lost to you. Don't get too cocky, because as soon as I'm back from Hoenn, we'll meet each other in a contest... and this time, I will be the winner! Hohohohoooo!"

The haughty girl placed her hand in front of her mouth and laughed out loud, in a manner that reminded Ash and his friends of Jessie... then, she waved a hand and began walking away. "Well, I guess I have to get going! I promised my Pokemon I would have taken them to the beauty salon. See you at the next Pokemon contest... to celebrate my victory, of course!"

Ursula walked away without looking back... and Ash sighed as she disappeared from their sight. "That girl sure is something, huh? First she tries to help us, and then she dumps us like that... I really don't know what to make of her."

"Well, everyone has his or her own way to give advice... Ursula is simply too proud to admit when she wants to help someone." Brock answered. "Think nothing of that."

"Brock is right, that's not the right time to worry about her." Dawn continued. Then, she gripped her fist in front of her, and scarlet flames burst out dramatically from behind her! "And when we'll face each other, I and my Pokemon will be stronger too! I won't lose to her, I'll show what I and my Pokemon are made of!"

Ash stepped backwards, trying to avoid being scalded by the flames that had comically burst around his blue-hared friend. "Er... I... have no problem believing that, Dawn!" he answered with an embarassed laugh. "Man, you're sure taking this rivalry seriously... hehehee, kinda reminds me of the old times with Gary!"

"Still, Ursula is right when she says we can't get too lax. We need to start training again as soon as we can..." Brock was beginning to say...

...and just then, somesort of firework exploded loudly above the Pokemon play area, colouring the sky in an orange hue and then unleashing a chain reaction of smaller explosions! Alarmed, the Rock Pokemon expert turned his head in that direction... just in time to see a proud-looking Gible standing over the dazed Croagunk, Pikachu and Piplup, his reptilian face turned upwards and an orange beam of light coming from his mouth. Croagunk, Piplup and Pikachu hadn't really gotten hurt... but their expressions spoke volumes about how annoyed they felt about that!

"_Pi... ka-chu!_" the electric mouse protested, giving a dirty look to the Ground / Dragon Pokemon

"_Pip! Lup! Pip! Lup!_"

"_Crooooagunk..._"

"Er..." Brock commented as Ash and Dawn sweatdropped in disbelief. "I guess my Gible needs a little more discipline, with that strange attack of his..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Author's Note: Finally, I've updated my story! My work had been interrupted because of Christmas vacation, and because I haven't had access to a computer for a while, but now I'm going to restart updating, and I hope I'll put up the next chapter in two weeks or so.**

**I hope I did a decent job with Ursula. She's one of my favourites, and will play an important part later on in my story - my aim is not to write her as too friendly towards Ash and his team, especially Dawn, but still portray her as a decent person, her arrogant attitude aside.**

**Well, that's about it for now! Stay tuned for the new chapter!**


	8. Max's First Pokemon

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back! I hope this chapter does not come too late for you, and I welcome you back to my Pokemon story, which is just now beginning to accelerate! This chapter will give you quite a few surprises, and I'm sure many of you will be impatient to know how things will evolve later... believe me, there will be quite a lot of happenings from now on, and the story will take on a more frenetic rhythm!**

**But I'm not gonna say too much right now. Just... enjoy the new chapter, and let me know how well I'm doing! For that matter, I apologize for some mistakes that had slipped in the latest chapters, but it's been quite a long time since I last saw the last Kanto episodes, and I forgot some details... and with the kind of life I have, I had little time to sit there and rewatch them. I'll try to be more accurate from now on, okay?**

**That said, enjoy the new chapter!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 8 - Max's First Pokemon**

Morning had come early enough for Canalave City, and a well-known trio of female trainers was already sitting around a table, enjoying breakfast and chatting among themselves like the longtime friends they were...

"Gee... maybe one day you should explain to Candice how you do that, Maylene..." Candice, Snowpoint City's Gym Leader, commented with a sigh. Bth Gym Leaders had stopped there for the night to keep company to their friend Zoey, as they waited for the day where, hopefully, the red-haired coordinator could have taken the ship to Hoenn. At that moment, the pink-haired martial artist was still proudly wearing her everyday clothes - a blue sleeveless shirt and a pair of baggy training pants! It looked like Candice had failed to rope her into her afternoon shopping spree...

"You managed not to buy a single dress... and not even a pair of shoes, at that! Despite the fact that I and Zoey have spent the whole afternoon dragging you around the shops! You must have some strategy of sorts to do that, because Candice does not know any other girl who could manage that!" the Ice Pokemon expert said, keeping referring to herself in third person as she gave Maylene's clothing a second look.

For her part, Maylene was unperturbed. "Hehee... what can I say, Candice, you know I was never into shopping. Especially when it comes to dresses and shoes!" she explained. "You see, that's a way of training for me... walking everywhere lightly dressed and with no shoes. It helps the body adapt to any adversity!"

"It also helps catching one heck of a cold, for that matter..." Zoey joked after taking a sip from a ot cup of tea. "Really, Maylene, I understand that keeping fit is important for a martial artist, but don't you think you're kinda overdoing it? I mean, you've walked all the way from Veilstone City to Snowpoint... and it was chilling! I'm not surprised you were sneezing like nobody's business when you got there!"

"Er..." the pinkette answered, feeling embarassed all of a sudden for what she considered a poor showing. "Well... that was simply a demonstration of weakness on my side! If... if I had trained better, I would have been waltzing through the snow like though a grassy field! I just have to attune my body to bad weather, that's all!"

"Or maybe wear a jacket, Candice believes it would be more practical..." Candice answered as she flipped a jet black pigtail past her shoulder. "Well, no matter... all that counts is, we've spent another afternoon together and we had fun. Right, Zoey?"

"Yeah, you're right!" Zoey answered, smiling in satisfaction. "It's good to just get away from everything, sometimes, before getting on another adventure! And, since you were there, I didn't even risk getting bored! Thanks for staying, girls, I really appreciated it!"

"Reall, Zoey, it was nothing!" Maylene answered with a shrug. "We had fun as well, after all... it was a nice afternoon, even though Candice here tried to drag me into her shopping spree..."

Candice chuckled and showed the palms of her hands. "A pity Maylene is incorruptible on that!"

The three girl were still happily chatting among themselves, with Candice doing the most of the talking, when a TV near their table suddently began transmitting some breaking news, which caused more than a few heads to turn that way. Zoey, Candice and Maylene did so as well, both out of curiosity and alarm - it was probably something serious...

"Huh? What's going on there?" the red-haired coordinator asked herself, her eyes somewhat narrowed. As soon as she said that, the announcer's face appeared on the screen and began giving out the news, with a professional's detached and neutral tone.

"_Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. We apologize for interrupting the regular broadcast. This special edition of the Sinnoh Pokemon News is on air to give you the news of a serious accident which happened not more than an hour ago at Snowpoint City, in the northern region of Sinnoh._"

Candice widened her eyes in horror, affixing them on the TV screen, and stood up from her chair... and even Zoey and Maylene froze. Something had happened to their friend's hometown? Something serious enough to merit a special edition? The answer came but two seconds after that, in the form of a shocking video showing a huge avalanche detaching itself from a side of the mountain and falling upon the city, drowning a part of it under a freezing white wave!

"_A snowslide of unexpected size has just fallen from the side of the mountain near which Snowpoint City, hitting the western side of the city._" the announcer spoke, as the images continued showing up on the screen, keeping everybody's eyes glued to them. "_Experts had not foreseen the possibility that such a tragic event could take place, and the city was caught completely off guard. For obvious reasons, no estimation has been done as of yet of the damage sustained by thecity, but losses of life are feared. The rescue teams are on their way to Snowpoint City as we speak, and will surely do their best to save as many as possible... and Sinnoh's Elite Four have just proclaimed an emergency reunion, to discuss about the causes of such a tragic event. At the moment, though, we are still receiving confused and lacking news. We will keep you updated in future news bullettins..._"

Candice pushed her chair away from hair, looking like she was trying to keep panic and anxiety at bay, and barely managing to do so. Not that Zoey and Maylene could blame her, of course... they would have been quite upset themselves if they knew that something so serious had happened to their hometowns...

Without waiting for the news bullettin to end, Candice turned to her friends. "G-girls... I... I'm sorry, but... I can't stay here anymore!" she said, her words coming out haltingly because of her shock. "I... I have to go back to... Snowpoint... and help with the rescue operations. I... I'm sorry for leaving you here, but..."

"Hold on a sec, Candice!" Maylene exclaimed, standing up herself. "I'm coming with you! My Fighting Pokemon can help with the rescue operations, and anyway... I can't just stay here and do nothing!"

"I'm coming too." Zoey said, without hesitating. "Candice, Maylene... I'm coming to Snowpoint with you."

Candice sighed and shook her head. "Zoey, you don't have to do that for us, really..." she murmured, now somewhat calmer. "You need to take your ship to Hoenn, right? So... just go, and don't worry about us. We'll mahage... somehow!"

But the red-haired coordinator shook her head. "Not a chance... what kind of friend would I be if I went on my way while you're dealing with such a serious problem? No, I'm coming as well, I can help out at least a little! My journey to Hoenn can wait." she said, shrugging at the end. "For now, the important thing is to go back to Snowpoint City and help out as much as we can. Girls, do you happen to know if there's some ship to Snowpoint departing from here? Provided Snowpoint's port is still working..."

"Snowpoint was hit in its western side, so... the port should have survived, more or less." Candice answered. "Anyway... yeah, there should be some ship going there. After all, Snowpoint City is quite an important town. Now, I just hope we don't have to wait too long... anyway, thanks a lot, Zoey! I really can't thank you enough for your kindness..."

"About what? It's the least I can do, for a friend..." Zoey answered. "Alright then, we're off to the port. Let's see what we can do..."

Maylene nodded. "Okay... I think there's a ship in one hour, we have just enough time to grab our bags and catch a ticket."

"It's settled, then." Zoey concluded. "Candice, do not worry! Whatever happens, we're at your side!"

Candice managed to smile weakly as Zoey placed a hand on her shoulder in encouragement. "Thanks, Zoey... Maylene... you're really helping! Right, girls, let's make haste and go to the port! We have to hurry up!"

"Great, Candice! That's the spirit!" Maylene exclaimed, happy to see her friend not giving in to her understandable anguish. Now, the only thing they had to hope for was that there was something they could do once in Snowpoint City...

**oooooooooo**

"Okay, Mudkip... use Tackle!" Max exclaimed as his sarter dodged an attack and got on his opponent's side. At the moment he was fighting a Pokemon looking like a wolf or hyena cub, with somewhat long grey fur going into black on his face and paws. His ears were pointed, and his eyes were yellow with red irises, a similarly colored nose, and fangs slightly protruding from his lower jaw. It was clearly a Poochyena, one of Hoenn's most common Pokemon, and a common choice for beginning trainers.

Mudkip chirped his own name and threw himself at Poochyena as soon as the latter tried to attack again. With a powerful shoulder blow, the small Water Pokemon slammed on his opponent, causing him to buckle and fall to the ground with a frustrated yip. However, Poochyena got up quickly, shook himself and stood on guard again, while Mudkip leapt backwards to get some safety distance. By the side, May was looking with palpable pride at her younger brother's first battle... it was like going back in time, back when she was a beginning coordinator clumsily trying to train her Torchic...

"_Pooch!_" Poochyena barked and leapt at Mudkip in an attempt to hit him with a Tackle attack himself... and this time, the small Water Pokemon was not fast enough to dodge and was struck head-on, dropping to the ground with a short pained yelp. Luckily for him and Max, Mudkip was far more resilient than his small size could suggest, and managed to climb to his feet a few seconds later.

"You okay, Mudkip?" the bespectacled boy asked in worry, seeing that his Pokemon was beginning to take a few hits too many. "Can... can you still fight?"

"_Mud, mudkip!_" Mudkip answered as he turned to his trainer and nodded. Then, he quickly turned to Poochyena, who was getting ready for another attack. Max, May and Mudkip saw the small grey hyena throwing his head back and howling, which seemed to invigorate him somehow.

"Okay, bro... be careful now!" May warned him, recognizng the move. "That was a Howl attack, which raises Poochyena's attack power. Try to keep Mudkkip from getting hit!"

Max nodded, signaling to his older sister that he had the situation under control, then motioned to Mudkip to back away a little, until his starter ended up in front of a large bush. The young boy frowned, looking at Poochyena and waiting for him to use his next attack, which obviously was not long in the coming...

In fact, one second later, the hyena cub tried another Tackle attack, launching himself at Mudkip in an attack that Max had long seen coming. He and Mudkip reacted quickly, and the small Water Pokemon ducked as soon as Poochyena began jumping towards him. The Bite Pokemon, at that point, had taken too much speed to halt, and ended up leaping towards Mudkip, flying above him, missing him by just a couple inches, and landing straight into the bush Mudkip had backed away in front of!

"Alright! Just as I hoped!" Max exclaimed, flashing a victorious smile. "Now, Mudkip! Hit him with Mud Slap!"

"_Mudkip!_" his starter answered happily. As Poochyena tried to somehow get free from the tangle of branches and leaves he had jumped into, Mudkip aimed for just a split second and moved one of his front paws in an arc, launching some mud into the hyena cub's face and blinding him for a moment! Poochyena growled in rage and frustration, and tried to shake the mud away with his front paws, but there wasn't much he could do before Max threw his Pokeball at him.

"Great, Mudkip!" Max exclaimed. "And now, capture time! Go!"

The Pokeball flew and hit Poochyena as he was still trying to get out of the bush, absorbing the hyena cub inside of itself before closing with a sudden metallic sound. May and Max watched the Pokeball swaying from one side to the other, holding their breaths in expectation... and finally, the spheric device stopped, and the red light that had lit up on the conjunction between the two halves turned off, finally sealing Poochyena inside! Max had managed to catch his first wild Pokemon!

"Yes... yes, I did it!" Max cheered, reaching his Pokeball and grabbing it in one hand before lifting it up in the air in triumph! "I caught my first Pokemon! Awesome!"

"_Mudkip! Mudkip!_" Mudkip echoed, happily jumping around as he took part in his trainer's joy. May, for her part, stood up from the rock she was sitting on and applauded.

"Well done, Max! Good job, Mudkip! You managed to catch your first Pokemon! That was really impressive, you know? I don't think I ever saw anyone catch a Poochyena so skillfully at their first attempt!" the brunette lauded them.

Max stratched Mudkip on the top of his head to thank him for his effort... then, with a somewhat uppity attitude, he stood up and adjusted his glasses. "Well, sis, not to gloat, but... being around Pokemon experts before I started my journey did help." he said. "And it's also thanks to the tactic I and Mudkip had worked out... the secret to Pokemon battles is having the right strategy! Isn't it, Mudkip?"

"_Mud, kip!_" the small starter said, tilting his head on one side. May giggled, but before she could say anything else, another voice intruded into the conversation - a calm female voice tinted with sarcasm and a little bit of annoyance.

"Hm. So much rejoicing over a Poochyena?" the small girl making her way through the bush said, looking at the two sibling with detachment. "If you really have to boast, do that after catching, like, a Bagon or a Dratini. A Poochyena, to be frank, is nothing to write home about."

"Huh? Hey, hold on a second there!" Max protested as he turned to the one who had spoken: a short and slender girl about his same age, who was still holding herself with some air of authority, and whose face, while cute, was wearing an expression of indifference and superiority. She had shoulder-length dark red hair, with a rebellious curl on top of her head, and was wearing a short-sleeved green shirt with a white collar, sky blue shorts, and pink sandals with ribbons on the enlacements - which somewhat contrasted with the 'tough girl' image she was probably trying to convey. Following her was a Treecko with bright emerald scales and holding a blade of grass between his teeth.

"Who are you, by the way? I don't think I ever saw you before." Max asked her with a frown. Truth be told, he remembered seeing her, for a few seconds, among the newbie trainers queuing up before Prof. Birch's lab, but he hadn't thought much of it...

The short girl cleared her throat, and Max could detect a hint of apology seeping in her manner. "Okay, I beg your pardon. Guess I wasn't exactly in a position to criticize. My name is Hilde, and I'm a beginning Pokemon trainer as well." she said, before sparing Max's starter a glance. "Hm. So I heard you like Mudkips. I'm not much into Water Pokemon, but to each his own, I guess. I just wanted to say that capturing a Pokemon as common as a Poochyena isn't a good reason to boast. It's just a first step on the way to the Hoenn conference."

Max and Mudkip looked at each other in puzzlement, then looked at May, who just showed the palms of her hands as if to say that she didn't know what to say. "Actually... Hilde, was it?" the boy with the glasses answered. "Actually, I and Mudkip didn't think there was anything wrong with celebrating a little after catching my first pokemon. We know it won't be easy to go that far, but we don't have to be that serious about it, right?" Another thing that confused him was the fact that, although he must certainly have recognized his sister standing right there with him, Hilde didn't seem to be interested in the fact that she was meeting a small-time Hoenn celebrity. "And anyway, Hilde... you and your Treecko, have you already caught any Pokemon?"

Hilde stood silent for a while, as if debating within herself whether to answer that question or not, then she shrugged and decided that it couldn't hurt to be honest here. "Just a Wurmple, for now. Nothing really special, I just wanted to go to the nearest Pokemon Center to let him rest for a while, and then I'll start training him. You'd do well to have your Mudkip and Poochyena rest a little as well. You never know when they'll have to fight again."

Still surprised by the girl's serious and unenthusiastic tone, Max nodded without really thinking too much about it. "Alright, I was going to do that anyway. If you're okay with it, we might go there together now, what about it?"

"Whatever." Hilde answered, her expression not changing one bit. "Since you're asing me, I'm okay with it. The Pokemon Center is this way."

With that, Hilde recall her Treecko into her Pokeball and led the way towards the nearest Pokemon Center, only turning for a brief second to motion to May, Max and Mudkip to follow her. The siblings and the Water Pokemon followed suit, still wondering about her aloof attitude.

"Really, Max, I never saw such a serious kid in your age group..." May said, wiping some dust off her shorts. "You saw her around here, by chance?"

"Sort of, sis..." Max answered as he recalled Mudkip. "I saw that girl just a few times before today, and I really don't know her... she's a strange girl, always brooding on her own... and don't ask me why, but she always looks like she's angry or something. She's never aggressive, to be fair... she just seems to want to keep her distance."

"I see. Well, she's sure a strange girl..." May commented. "I kinda think we'll be meeting her quite a few times from now on. Who's to say, you two might even become the new rivalry in town! Hehehee..."

"Ooookay..." Max answered with a sigh. "Sometimes, sis, I don't know where you come up with such ideas. To be fair, though, I wouldn't dislike the idea."

As the improvised trio continued on their way to the Pokemon Center, Hilde took her second Pokeball out of her belt and looked at it for some time... before cracking a small, prideful smile which broke through her aloof appearence.

"Well... welcome in my team, Wurmple!" she murmured to herself, as if wanting to make sure nobody could hear her. "You can bet I'll make a magnificent Pokemon out of you, that's a promise."

**oooooooooo**

With a loud squeal from its sirens, the large ship departed from Canalave Port, leaving the big city and a large crowd of people waving goodbye behind it. Luckily, the weather problems keeping ships from going to Hoenn did not seem to effect the journeys to Kanto, and the ship was able to leave on time... much to the joy of Ash, Dawn and Brock, who were now standing on the ship's upper bridge, watching as Sinnoh, with all of its legends and adventures, faded into the background. The smell of salty water was flowing into their nostrils, and the water spraying all around the ship created a few iridescent shadows all around, reflecting the rays of the morning sun.

"Aaaah, it sure feels great to have the wind blowing in your face as the ship is sailing!" Dawn commented, not even bothering to hide her excitement. After all, that was her first time on a ship, and her first journey to a new continent.

"We can understand that, Dawn... we were just as excited when we sailed for the first time!" Ash answered. Looking around himself, the black-haired boy could see that the bridge was not very crowded - there was more than enough space to let their Pokemon out of the Pokeballs and let them enjoy the wind and the sun as well. "By the way, guys, maybe we should let out our Pokemon? I think they would like that!"

"_Pika chu... pika pika chu!_" Pikachu nodded and pointed to a practically empty space not far away from the team. It was the ideal place to let their Pokemon out without risking obstructing people on the bridge.

Brock nodded as he extracted his Pokeballs. "Hmmm... yeah, I think that's a good idea!" he agreed. "Alright, guys, you can come out and stretch a little!"

"You too, guys! Enjoy this beautiful scene!" Dawn commented as she and Ash let their Pokemon out. In a hail of luminous beams, the team's Pokemon came out one after the other: Sudowoodo, Croagunk, Happiny and Gible; Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu, Mamoswine, Ambipom and Togekiss; and finally, Staraptor, Gliscor, Sceptile, Heracross and Infernape! The three friends' teams were all in front of them, and each Pokemon let out his call the moment they appeared in front of their trainer.

"Hi, guys!" Ash exclaimed happily. "We thought you'd like to say goodbye to Sinnoh yourselves, before the ship gets away..."

Almost all the Pokemon turned around to watch as Canalave City, with all its modern building mixed seamlessly with the more traditional style houses, the golden beaches and the green areas dotting the city. As they watched the city getting farther and farther from them, it really seemed like a chapter of their lives had ended, and another one was about to begin...

However, one of the Pokemon did not seem that interested in such thoughts... in fact, Gible suddently and sneakily crept behind Piplup and, after smirking mischievously for a split second, clamped his jaws shut on the blue penguin's short tail!

"_Gib!_"

"_Pip? Pipluuuuuup!_" Piplup chirped, frantically moving his short wings in pain as he tried to shake off the ravenous little dragon. Immediately, Ash, Pikachu, Dawn and Brock turned away from watching the ever-shrinking city on the horizon, and to the two Pokemon, who were by now the center of all attention!

"Oh, gosh... Piplup!" Dawn exclaimed as she tried to help out her starter.

"Gible! Let Piplup go!" Brock followed. A split second later, the small landshark relinquished his hold on Piplup, who immediately stepped away... and stood there looking at a comically swollen red tail! Chirping in indignation, Piplup showed his tail to Ash, Pikachu and Dawn as well, who grit their teeth in sympathy. Gible's teeth sure could leave a mark!

"_Pika pi! Pikachu pi pika pi chu..._" Pikachu squeaked, rubbing his forehead with one of his paws.

"I agree, Pikachu, I wouldn't like to be bitten as well..." Ash answered. "For crying out loud, the little guy even munched on a Pokeball..."

"Gible, that will not do." Brock scolded his newest Pokemon, gently but firmly. "You ought to say sorry to Piplup, don't you think so?"

The Ground/Dragon Pokemon grunted and took on a vaguely guilty expression, as if his trainer's words had finally managed to make him understand he was doing something wrong, and Brock sighedtiredly, understanding that, once he had a little time on his hands, Gible's training needed to be taken care of...

**oooooooooo**

Somewhere else on the ship, though, a trio of familiar-looking cleaners was hard at work washing the bridge, and were apparently caught up in their work. However, if one had seen the girl's long fucsia hair, the boy's light blue ones, and the third person's unusually short size, he could probably have had a few suspects, provided he was familiar enough with a certain goofy criminal trio...

"Phew... darn, Meowth, did we really have to end up as floor-washers on the same ship as the twerps?" Jessie murmured, leaving her work for a while and looking at her left hand. "I mean, all this brushing and washing makes my hands hurt, and it's the second time in a day I broke a nail! I'm beginning to regret suggesting this as a way to sneak onboard..."

"Well, if you were willing to sneak in with the suitcases and enjoy the heat and the darkness for the whole journey..." Meowth shot back. "Just quit your bellyaching, Jessie, we'll have to make do! Look at James boy there, he sure doesn't complain! He knows that we have to just bear it for now, right, James?"

The talking Pokemon stood in wait for his human friend's answer, which strangely enough did not come...

"James?" Meowth asked. "Hey, James? I asked you a question, haven't ya heard?"

"Uuuuuugh..." James answered, sounding like he was more dead than alive! When Meowth and Jessie turned to him, they saw that the reason for his lack of a response was more than obvious - James was bent over the ship's railing, and had given up on any attempt to hold down his breakfast! Evidently, the goofy criminal was not cut out for a sailor's life...

"Ugh... sorry, guy, but I couldn't take it anymore..." James wheezed, turning back to his friends and reveal a stunned expression with swirly spirals in the place of eyes! "All this moving and rolling... I'm never going to get used to it!"

Jessie wrinkled her nose in disgust, and a huge sweatdrop poured down Meowth's head! "J-James! For crying out loud, we couldn't have a little more discretion now, could we?" the red-haired criminal exclaimed. "And you're supposed to be a sailor on a transoceanic ship! At least try to look the part, instead of getting seasick!"

"Yeah, now she tells us we have to act like sailors..." Meowth muttered. "Good job practicing what you preach, Jessie girl..."

James took out a bottle of water and drank from it to wash away the horrific taste left in it. "I'm sorry, Jessie, but... I really can't help it, I get seasick easily!" he weakly excused himself.

Jessie sighed and shook her head. "At least try not to let yourself be seen, okay? That way, you're gonna give yourself away in no time!" she answered. "Well, let's not talk about this, and get back to work, before we draw some more attention. Getting thrown overboard is not in my list of priorities for now!"

"Just bear it, guys... we just need to grit our teeth a little longer, and then we'll be back in Kanto, so try not to get nervous now." Meowth warned. "Once we're there, we can work up a nice little plan of attack... and the twerps will not get away this time! We'll catch Pikachu and return to the boss!"

"SAILORS!"

A stern, loud voice recalled the three, who immediately stood up in surprise and turned to the commanding officer who had just spoken, standing on a railway some ten feet above them. In a moment of panic, they all did a military salute and held their brooms as if they were guns...

"Y-yessir!" they all exclaimed in unison, smiling nervously and hoping that the captain had not overheard anything...

"You are not getting paid to chit-chat and stand idle on the bridge!" the captain called them out severely. "You all get back to work, now!"

"YESSIR!" Jessie, James and Meowth answered, secretly sighing in relief for not having been caught...

**oooooooooo**

After taking a good look at the papers he had just received, Giovanni carefully placed them at his side on the desk he was working at. For a man such as him, a rich manager leading one of the most famous criminal organizations in the world, it was an everyday job to go through a stack of important documents. He needed to be well-informed on what was going on wherever Team Rocket had some working bases, and on the rival organizations' activities. And judging from what he had just read, some happening around the world deserved his attention...

"Hmm... so, it seems that the infamous Pokemon Hunter J has been hired by someone else... despite having been thought dead in an incident in the Sinnoh continent. How interesting." he said to himself, his mouth slightly raised in a grin. He had never hired J's services, but he know her reputation well enough... a merciless Pokemon huntress, and a mercenary who would have done any dirty work for the right price. Still, she was someone who knew her job... and whoever had hired her, was definitely rich and wanted the job to be carried out without mistakes. A pity there were no information on her new boss as of yet.

"Well, this only confirms my suspicions. There is some big prize on the line here." the Team Rocket boss reason. Giovanni was a man between forty and fifty years old who still looked somewhat younger than he was, with smooth black hair and a tough, cruel face befitting of the leader of a criminal organization. He was dressed in elegant beige clothes with black shoes, a white shirtunderneath and a red necktie, and he was constantly in the company of a large Persian who was now lazily lying at his side, enjoying the occasional petting. He was known for being ruthlessly efficient, and for his shrewd, pragmatic business sense... the fact that no Kanto or Johto police was willing to move against him, despite his well-known status as the Team Rocket leader, was a testimony to this!

Giovanni raised his head from the papers as he heard the door to his office slowly opening... and his best spy slowly entered the room with a somewhat haughty, while still respectful, pacing: a blonde, harmless-looking girl wearing a black Team Rocket uniform, complete with hat and a capital red R on the front! Giovanni smiled thinly as his most efficient spy, Domino, stepped in front of his desk and bowed in respect.

"I came as soon as I could, sir." she greeted. "Domino, Team Rocket's top spy and saboteur, reporting for duty! Tell me, sir... what mission do you have for me?"

"Wecome back, Domino. Professional as always, I see." Giovanni greeted back, stroking his Persian's soft, spotlessly white fur and causing the huge cat Pokemon to purr gently. "Very well... this will be a simple enough mission, but one who requires some care and forethought. A lor more could be at stake than it appears at first, and that's why I called for you in particular. I know you are the most qualified Team Rocket agent for this job."

Domino closed her eyes and smiled with professional pride. "I appreciate the high esteem you hold me in, sir. What's this job about, to be exact?"

Giovanni cleared his throat and began explaining. "Recently, there have been some strange happenings in the continent of Sinnoh. According to my sleeper agents, not much more than two months ago, an event whose particulars are still unknown threatened to disrupt the balance of our world. Two incredibly powerful Legendary Pokemon were about to be unleashed, but Team Galactic's - that's the name of the organization behind this event - plan was foiled at the last possible moment by the intervention of the Sinnoh League champion Cynthia, and of a few other trainers whose identities are still unknown to me. What piqued my curiosity was what happened afterwards... a third party has begun sending agents in several parts of the world, to carry out research operations in places of importance... in particular, as of now, it seems that their research is concentrating on Mount Ember, in the Sevii Islands. I presume you know what I'm talking about."

"Indeed, I do..." Domino answered readily. "That's a group of seven - actually nine, but two of these are little more than glorified emerging rocks - islands near the Equator. Halfway between Kanto and the Orange Islands, to be exact. It's a place where there are no important active organizations, and it has been mostly ignored until now. So the question is, why is this new organization so interested in this place?"

Giovanni clasped his hands in front of himself and nodded. "Very well, Domino. I see you've already understood the whole point." the Team Rocket boss affirmed. "The fact that this nw organization is conentrating on a place that had been mostly ignored for now is quite puzzling. Your mission is to get to Knot Island, the northest island of the archipelago, and try to understand what the new organization is looking for. If you can gather information on some of its key members or leader, that's a welcome bonus. I presume that for someone as skilled and crafty as you are, it shouldn't be that difficult... correct?"

Domino saluted, showing no hesitation. "Correct, sir! You can count on me, I'll discover these mysterious peoples identities, and what they want!" the blonde answered. "I will leave for Sevii Islands as soon as I'm ready. Are there... special equipments I ought to carry with me for the job?"

Giovanni nodded in satisfaction. "Very good... this is exactly what I wanted to hear from you, Domino!" he answered. "In fact, our scientists have created a new kind of tracking and recording device that could be very useful for discovering new things about this group. Before you leave for Sevii Islands, you'd do well to pay our Celadon laboratories a visit. Also, I'd like to inform you that the new organization has hired the services of Pokemon Hunter J. Be on your guard, she can be quite the nasty customer, and her Pokemon are quite powerful, or so I heard. I know you're not the kind of person to underestimate a potential enemy, but it never hurts to be warned."

"I know, sir! I will not be caught off guard!" Domino concluded, bowing again before her boss dismissed her. The teenaged spy left her boss' office, only turning back one last time to salute him before exiting from the same door she had come in from.

Giovanni's Persian yawned lazily and groomed his fur, as his trainer / owner smirked again and scratched him behind one of his ears and looked at a map of the Sevii Islands with glee. Two red marks had been highlighted on the map - Knot Island, and another place, where it seemed there was nothing but a floating rock...

"Excellent, really. Bad weeds should be eradicated quickly, before they get annoying." Giovanni said with grim satisfaction. "Admittedly, it will take time before the plan really goes anywhere, but we can't have everything, now can we? If things go smoothly enough, Team Rocket will soon become this world's most powerful organization! Hehehee..."

**oooooooooo**

Paul had never been the kind of person to stay holed up in a library when he had a chance to train his Pokemon... however, in that particular case, he was willing to make an exception. In the situation he was in, wandering around in search of worthy opponents, without having a definite goal, was not going to help him. He needed to search for a place where he could surely meet dangerous opponents and train his team to near-perfection. Mount Silver was the ideal place for this, but before he went, Paul had to be sure it was really the place he was looking for. Paul had never been one who cared for wasting his time...

And in fact, sitting at a desk in a corner of a Sunyshore City library, the purple-haired boy was carefully reading through a geography book about the various continents of the world. For a moment, his gaze fell upon the chapter regarding the continent of Orre, the country with the worst reputation in the world, considered some sort of Hell on Earth from all other Leagues. For a moment, he thought that the idea of going there might have had merit, as he was obviously going to find trainers who could give him a good fight. Then again, it was not a good idea to disperse one's attention too much, and he needed to concentrate on nearer continents. Besides which, with the bad rep Orre had earned itself thanks to Team Cipher's inhuman experiments, it would have been hard to find a means of transport to that place...

Finally, after thumbing a little through the Kanto chapter, Paul looked at a paragraph... the one about Mount Silver, considered the most dangerous place in that whole continent! A spark of interest lit up in his cold eyes, and the purple-haired boy started reading the chapter with the utmost attention, especially as it listed the Pokemon living in that region. What he read left him satisfied... other than the usual Golbat and Graveler infesting the caves, there were strong and powerful Pokemon like Tyranitar and Metagross wandering around. Obviously, if only he could just meet one of those Pokemon and train against it, his team would likely have benefitted from it!

An almost fierce smile crossed the Sinnoh runner-up's face. Mount Silver it was, then. That was the best place for his new, special training to take place...

**oooooooooo**

Several hours later...

That evening, in a small town under Mount Moon called Pewter City, a magnetic train coming from Vermilion City stopped at the newly-built station, and the doors opened with a slight noise, allowing the passengers out... in particular, a group of young trainers who tiredly but happily walked out of the train and looked around, admiring the way the town had gotten more modern since the day they had left it.

"I sure didn't know the magnetic train had come all this way... as soon as our ship docked in Vermilion Port, all we had to do was buy a ticket and catch the first train to Pewter City!" Ash commented, looking around himself. The pretty little town where he had faced Brock in his first Gym match seemed to have caught up a little in regards with technology, but still retained that quiet, relaxed feel Ash remembered from his first time there... For a second, his mind wandered to Solidad, the coordinator who had won Hoenn's Grand Festival and who, like Brock, was born in Pewter City... who knew where she was and what she was doing at that moment?

He didn't dwell on that for long, though. Evening was quickly approaching, and they needed to find a place for the night...

Diverse ore dopo...

"Well, guys..." Brock said as he looked wistfully at the Gym which was already visible in the distance. "I guess you can all be my guests for today! I think my family will be glad to see us all again... after all this time!" As he spoke, a contented yet bittersweet smile was appearing on the young Rock Pokemon expert's face. Ash knew how much his longtime friend cared about his family, and he could imagine that this was a moment of great emotion and significance for him. He was about to meet again with his parents and his many little siblings...

As the trio stood by the train station, getting away from the crowd to look at the modernized Pewter City, Pikachu hopped down from Ash's shoulder and motioned for them to follow him, impatient to see once again a place who had remained in his heart as well. "_Pika pi! Pika ka! Pika pika chu! Pi pika, pika pi chu! Pika!_" he squealed, motioning to them with one of his small paws.

Ash chuckled and rubbed the back of his head as he turned back to reality. "Hehehee... looks like Pikachu too can't wait for a little rest! C'mon, guys, let's get going! And... thanks for the invitation, Brock! I'm sure I will really be glad to see your family again. And you, Dawn... I'm sure you'll like them as well!"

"I have no problem believing it!" the blue-haired girl replied happily as the trio, following an enthusiastic Pikachu, began walking to the main square. It was all very reminescent of the first time Ash had been there... the museum, the roads, the houses... it was like going back in time...

And, the trio of friends were sure of this, it was just the start of a new, exciting adventure!

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And so, our trio is finally back in Kanto, which means that the much-awaited for reunion between Ash and Misty is only a few chapters away! Before that, though, we have to deal with a very nasty surprise in the form of the avalanche that hit Snowpoint City, and the mess Zoey, Candice and Maylene now find themselves in. On a lighter note, Max has begun his Pokemon journey, and he seems to have already met a potential rival in the form of Hilde... there sure are quite a lot of things to keep track of, not the least of which is Paul deciding to train on Mt. Silver!**

**I had fun writing thischapter, and I hope I can get another one on track in a matter of two-three weeks. Of course, it all depends whether school lets me update that quickly, as I've got quite a lot of work to do...**

**Well, that's about it for now! See you soon, I hope! **


	9. Back To Pewter City

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back! I tried to update as soon as I could, but life has been kinda hectic, and I haven't been able to work on this story as much as I would have liked. Add to this that I've had a bout with depression and... well, you know how these things go.**

**But now I'm back, and ready to continue! I don't have much to say, actually, except... enjoy our trip back to the origins, to Pewter City, and let's see how many of you can recognize an old face that will make his comeback in this chapter! Of course, it won't be all fun and games, since Zoey and her friends are facing quite a problematic situation...**

**Anyway, without further ado, let's continue our story! Happy reading! **

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 9 - Back To Pewter City**

Pewter City's Gym had not really changedthat much since the last time Brock had been there... and obviously, not as much as when Brock's mom, who had reappeared out of nowhere after a long time, had had the extravagant idea of turning it into a Water-themed Gym! Now, Pewter Gym retain its essential yet functional appearence, its neutral rocky hue and its walls of unrefined stone that already spoke of what the challengers could expect to find inside. The only thing looking out of place were the flamboyant decorations Lola had placed all that time ago!

Still, that was not what Ash, Pikachu and Dawn were looking at at the moment, as they were more busy looking with undeniable satisfaction at Brock getting surrounded and greeted by his numerous younger siblings!

"Hahahahaaa... hey, hey, calm down, little guys! I'm here, and I'm not vanishing into thin air!" the young future Pokemon breeder laughed as he bent down to receive hugs from all his younger siblings. "So, kids, how's it going? I can see you're doing well... have you been good kids? You haven't made Mommy and Daddy mad, have you? Hehehee... yeah, I'm happy to see you too! It's great to be back home after such a long time!"

"Big borther Brock, is it true you've been to Hoenn and Sinnoh?" one of the kids happily asked, curious to know more about that. "What Pokemon did you see?"

"You did catch some Pokemon, didn't you?" another of his siblings asked, before pointing to Dawn. "And who's the pretty young lady there?"

Dawn sweatdropped and scratched her cheek in embarassment. "Well... guess I should feel happy about this, it's the first time someone close to my age compliments me like this..."

"C'mon, kids, one thing at a time!" Brock answered, greeting his little siblings one by one. "I'm back from a long journey, and I have a lot of things to tell you, so... let's take it easy for now, okay?"

"You're right, my boy! I think you'll have all the time to tell us about your adventures when we're in front of a warm dinner and a glass of fresh water, right?" A friendly voice from the Gym's entrance was heard. Brock felt a pang of both happiness and nostalgia gripping at his heart when he glanced up... and there were his parents, coming out of the Gym to greet the young trainers! "Welcome back home, son!"

"Dad... Mom..." Brock murmured, clearly moved. "I'm... very happy to be back home as well. Many things happened both in Hoenn and in Sinnoh... and I'm just waiting to tell you all about it! By the way... Ash and a friend of mine from Sinnoh are here as well! Come, guys!"

"Oh, right! I do remember Ash!" Brock's mom Lola, a youthful-looking lady with an extravagant streak and a passion for decorating, said as Ash, Pikachu and Dawn came closer. "And his Pikachu as well! And what about this fine young lady, Brock? She's the friend from Sinnoh, right?"

"Exactly." Brock answered as Ash, Pikachu and Dawn all bowed in a polite greeting. "Dawn is a Pokemon coordinator from Sinnoh, and the winner of the latest Grand Festival! I don't know if you've watched it on TV..."

"Sadly, no, we didn't really have the time to watch it..." Lola sighed. "Which is a bit of a pity, really... those competitions are always so spectacular!"

Flint, Brock and his many siblings' father, chuckled gently. "I had a feeling you would say that, honey... Coordinator contests are just the kind of competition you'd like... it's a shame they haven't been localized in Kanto and Johto as well." he commented.

"Well... actually, now that I think of it, I could help Pokemon contests get localized her as well!" Dawn pointed out, having had the idea just at that moment. "By the way, my name is Dawn. I'm very glad to meet you, Mrs... erm..."

"Lola. Just call me Lola, dear, we don't really care for such formalities!" Brock's mom answered. "And... he's my husband, Flint! We've both been Gym Leaders in our time, though now our second son Forrest has taken up the mantle in Pewter City's Gym."

"Pleased to meet you as well, Dawn! I don't think I ever met anyone from Sinnoh before now..." Flint greeted her. "And, of course, welcome back to you as well, Ash and Pikachu! I can see you've gone a long way since you challenged Brock in this Gym!"

Ash chuckled in embarassment. "Hehee... let's just say, now I know better than to send Pikachu against a Ground-type Pokemon!" the young boy answered, remembering all too well how poorly his first battle against Brock had gone, back when he was still a beginner. Pikachu, on the other hand, shrugged as if to say that what was done was done.

"_Pikachu..._" the electric mouse squeaked.

Flint chuckled, then he invited everyone into the gym. "Well, but now let's not stay out here... come in, everybody, we can chat better inside, and you can put down all that luggage. We'll also have dinner in about one hour... hey, Lola, do you think we can fit three more people around the table?"

"Of course, dear!" the lady gently answered. "After all, we could fit until now, and there were ten of us... three more won't be a problem! Come on, guys, don't be skittish! We have to celebrate your return!"

Brock smiled brightly as he and his companions, together with Brock's cheering siblings stepped into the Gym and followed Flint and Lola. "With pleasure, Mom!"

As Ash's team excitedly stepped into the gym, they looked around to see just how much the place had changed during all that time. In fact, the Rock-type themed gym had changed just a little more internally than externally, and it didn't have the essential, almost spartan, look it had during Ash's first visit. Now, great arenas of solid stone stood among small paths of levigated earth, with several Ground and Rock type Pokemon standing on them and training, together with some pupils that Forrest had picked up during that time. Ash recognized a Sandslash, an Onix, a Rhyhorn... and, in the largest of the arenas, there was a rather unexpected sight: two Pokemon of completely different sizes facing each other in a training match: a small Geodude waving his short arms in front of himself like a boxer; and an immense Steelix with shining steel scales, hovering like a cobra over the much smaller Geodude and waiting for the right moment to strike! It didn't take long to Ash and Brock to recognize those two Pokemon...

"Hey, dad, those two are..." Brock exclaimed, pointing at the two combatants who were still concentrated on each other. Flint nodded, and Forrest stepped forward and pointed to the arena where the two Pokemon were training.

"Exactly, big bro! Those are your Geodude and your Steelix... they really gave their all in training, as of late!" Forrest told him. "They told us... they wanted to be well-trained for the day you would come home. And so... well, there they are! If you want to greet them, now you have all the time you want to do so!"

"Yeah, I really think I should..." Brock said... before being caught off-guard by a winged purple Pokemon detaching himself from the ceiling and swooping down on him in perfect silence, before wrapping his large wings around him! Brock flinched and stepped backwards, murmuring some incomprehensible words!

"Ugh... what... what on..." he murmured before the flying Pokemon detached himself from his face and began happily flapping his wings in front of him! It was his Crobat, coming to greet his trainer in his own peculiar way and smiling at him with his fang-like teeth! "Crobat! Man, this is a nice surprise! What's with you swooping down from the ceiling? You wanted to play a small prank on me, huh?"

"_CROBAAAAT!_" the huge bat answered in a shrieking voice.

Forrest chuckled and walked near Crobat, who lowered himself and clung to the young Gym Leader's shoulder, always keeping his wings open. "Hehehee... yeah, he was impatient to see you too, big bro!" he answered. "I think you'll need some time to receive your welcome from all your Pokemon!"

"You're right..." the dark-skinned boy answered. Then, he reached his Crobat and caressed him on the head. "Thanks, Crobat! It's nice to know that there's no place like home!"

**oooooooooo**

Zoey shivered from the cold as she looked with apprehension towards the horizon, clad in a red winter jacket, waiting for the first signs that Snowpoint City was getting closer. It was already beginning to feel a lot less warm, especially when compared to Canalave's comfortably warm climate, so that was already something... but the red-haired coordinator was still anxious to see how her friend's hometown had withstood the snowslide, and she was hoping for Candice not to be too shocked by that sudden disaster. She seemed to have coped well at the moment of receiving the bad news... but it was impossible to predict how she would react in front of the real thing.

Near Zoey, Maylene was looking in the distance herself, her arms crossed in front of herself. The pink-haired martial artist seemed to share Zoey's thoughts, and she too was hoping Snowpoint City had not been damaged from the avalanche too much. On the TV screen, it was impossible to make an estimate...

On her part, Candice was standing behind her friends, nervously pacing up and down in order to vent her anxiety. It was all too clear to her that Zoey and Maylene were worried sick about her, and while she was glad that her friends cared about her to such an extent, she was also feeling guilty for having dragged them along without even meaning to. But at that point, Candice reflected, it was too late to lament it. She could only hope for her hometown to be more or less in one piece, and for the number of victims to be as low as possible.

Finally, a few minutes later, the first Snowpoint buildings and the city's port area began to be visible from the deck of the ship, surrounded by tall green pine trees and perennial snow. Immediately, Zoey and her friends rushed to the ship's front to see what condition the city was in... and Candice, driven by her worry, leaned out of the deck in a dangerous manner, holding herself with both hands to the railing.

"Hey, Candice, be careful!" Zoey warned her. "Don't lean out so much, or you'll end up falling in the water!"

The girls looked harder to see how the snow-clad city was faring. Even from the ship's deck, it was plain that the city had lost its lively air and its usual high spirits... sure, it was possible to see activity, but ir was the dreary, grim activity immediately after a calamity of some kind, with people trying to help each other to give aid to the injured, clear the roads and take away what remained of the fallen buildings. Among this crowd, it was possible to see a few Pokemon, all trying to help out in their own way. Unfortunately, it was impossible to see clearly just how much the city had been damaged from where the three girls were standing...

"Look, girls, there we are." Maylene commented, noticing that a group of people was waiting by the port. The ship slowed down as it got closer and closer to its destination, while Zoey and her friends secretly thanked their good fortune that Snowpoint Port had not been reached by the avalanche. Finally, the ship stopped and, after a few minutes, the passengers were allowed to dismount. Zoey, Candice and Maylene, trying not to look nervous, got down... and Candice was immediately wrapped in a bear hug by two middle-aged people who were obviously her parents!

"Candice, honey..." her mother, a tall and elegant lady with flowing black hair, wearing a flower-decorated kimono and a pair of traditional geta sandals on white socks, exclaimed as she embraced her daughter. "I'm so glad you're back and you're okay!"

"Mom, Dad... I'm glad you are okay yourselves, I was so afraid..." Candice breathed out in relief, a huge weight being lifted from her soul, as Zoey and Maylene approached. "But... what happened here? How much damage did we get?"

"We still don't know, honey... it's too early to say." Candice's father answered. Despite not being young any more, the man still had a good-looking physique, with short black hair, grey eyes and barely visible beard and moustache. Like his wife, he was wearing dull-colored traditional clothes, and a padded grey hakama in order to protect himself from the icy cold of the region. "They're still looking into that, and they have no explanation for how such a huge mass of snow could have detached from the mountain without any warning. By the way, Candice... that girl here with you, is she that coordinator friend of yours who came here some time ago?"

Candice managed a smile as Zoey stepped forward and bowed. "Yes, daddy... she's Zoey, my friend who took part in the latest Sinnoh Grand Festival... which was her first one, by the way, and she placed second!" she explained to him. "And Maylene... well, you already saw her a few times, right? They both wanted to come, after they heard what happened..."

"Sir..." Zoey introduced herself. "It is a honor for me to meet you, though I'd have preferred it would happen under happier circumstances. I will do all I can to help you repair the damage and help those who need it."

"I'm here for the same reason!" Maylene exclaimed, not about to be left aside. "I and my Fighting Pokemon can help out even with the hardest works!"

The man was briefly amazed by the way the two girls had offered to lend a hand... but just a second later, he cracked a smile and nodded, motioning for them to follow him to the parts of the town that had taken the brunt of the avalanche. "I'm... glad you offered to lend us a hand! Then... please follow me, I'll take you to the damaged quarters!"

"Yes, Daddy..." Candice answered, somewhat sadly. She and her friends separated themselves from the crowd and followed Candice's parents through the snow-covered roads, keeping a serious and solemn expression for all the time - though Maylene found herself shivering for the cold, no thanks to her rather light clothing.

"Well, Maylene... not to be cheeky or anything, but maybe you should have listened to Candice and bought a pair of shoes, at least..." Zoey commented, taking a brief look at the pink-haired girl's constantly unshod feet. "They would have been useful now..."

Maylene sneezed, but remained firm in her resolve. "No... no problem, Zoey!" she replied, trying to sound firm through her chattering teeth. "It's all... training! Weakness going away from your body... ACHOOO!"

"Okay, I won't insist..." Zoey answered with a sigh... and then turned serious again as Candice and her parents stopped in the middle of a small square, and she was allowed to see more clearly how much damage the buildings had really taken from the avalanche. Several building had been crushed by the sheer force of impact and the weight of the snow, with broken wooden planks and broken pieces of furniture jutting out of the snow. It was sheer luck that the Pokemon Center and the Pokemon Market had been spared, but this did not detract from the tragedy of the situation... especially considering there could very well be more people trapped under the snow!

"Oh dear... this is terrible..." Candice murmured, a fist clenched near her heart as she surveyed the devastation. "We have to do something, and fast! There must be other people buried under there, we can't afford to wait! Abomasnow, Mamoswine! Please, come out! There's work to do!"

Snowpoint City's Gym Leader took her Pokeballs out of her belt and threw them in front of herself, letting the massive snowman and the fur-covered wild boar - her most physically powerful Pokemon - appear in front of her, emitting their telltale calls before turning to their trainer, waiting for orders.

"Okay, guys... I'm sorry to call you now that we've just arrived, but we really need your help!" Candice explained. "You saw what happened, right? I... I need your help to move the snow and the debris. You can do it, right?"

Abomasnow smacked a fist of his chest, and Mamoswine nodded seriously before getting to work, starting to dig in the snow as Maylene and Zoey sent out their own Pokemon.

"I'm helping out as well!" Maylene said. "Breloom, Machamp, please come out! Give Candice's Pokemon a hand!"

"Gallade, please come out!" Zoey called out to her strongest Pokemon. The elegant Psychic/Fighting Pokemon came out, and immediately joined Maylene's Pokemon in helping out Mamoswine and Abomasnow, lifting the damaged pieces of furniture and getting the snow out of the way, in order to free whoever could be underneath...

"Well, guess I'd better get a move on..." Maylene added, crucking her knuckles. "Don't worry, Candice... us and our Pokemon will do whatever it takes to help! Be strong... everything will be alright!"

"Thanks, Maylene! Hearing that from you makes it better!" the Ice Gym Leader answered. Her pink-haired friend gave a thumbs-up and a smile before heading off to work alongside her own Pokemon, using her incredible strength to help them move debris and snow. Zoey neared Candice and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, which the black-haired girl accepted gladly before turning her glance to the mountain that, up until then, had been a friend to Snowpoint City's people, and that had now turned into their worst enemy. There was something sinister going on there, Candice was sure of it!

"There is something very strange about this all..." Candice's father affirmed as he turned his eyes to the mountain near which one on Sinnoh's main lakes was situated. "That avalanche... just fell without warning, and nothing gave any indication that this would happen. It's like someone had it fall of his own free will..."

As fa as Candice knew, this might very well have been the case... and while Zoey wasn't the kind of person to believe in local legends, she had to admit that she felt a shiver every time she looked at the snow-covered mountain top...

**oooooooooo**

Knot Island, the island at the top north of the Sevii Island archipelago, was a warm and confortable place with pleasant vistas and mixed mediterrenean and tropic flora growing around a tall mountain, actually a long-inactive volcano. A beach of fine golden sand and a small city, complete with Pokemon Center and Pokemon Mart lied on the coastline, giving the island a touch of modernism in the midst of wild nature. It really gave the impression of a quiet, peaceful place, and the opinions of those who had been there confirmed this impression...

But on that particular night, as most of Knot Island's inhabitants were peacefully sleeping, something dangerous was quietly descending towards the surrounding sea, only a few kilometers away from the coastline. A huge high-technology flying machine, looking like a weird cross between a passenger plane and a spaceship, covered in grey laminated plate and decorated with strange symbols looking like upside-down blue R letters, was slowly descending on the clear waters as it approached the island's south coast, where the tall and jagged reefs did not seem to offer many possibilities for anchoring. Raising two streams of water at its sides, the huge flying machine proceeded to its destination... while inside of it, numerous strange people in blue uniforms, wearing helmets that obscured their faces and bearing the same upside-down R letter emblazoned on their chests, were standing on attention in front of a middle-aged grey-haired woman who was giving them some important instructions...

"Very well." Hunter J stated as she glared at her men. "This is the mission we have been given. Our mission is to get inside the volcano and locate the Legendary Pokemon lying inside of it. Moltres, one of Kanto's Legendary Birds, considered the most powerful of the three. We'll have to awaken him... then, as soon as Moltres takes flight, we'll head back to the ship and use the onboard weapons to subdue and capture it. With the Pokemon you've been given, I trust you will have no problem carrying this out... am I correct?"

"You are correct, Commander J!" a somewhat overeager underling exclaimed. He didn't sound much older than seventeen or eighteen years. "I will not disppoint you! With the Pokemon I got from you, I'm sure nothing will stand in my way!"

"You try to pipe down a little, Damien, got it?" a more careful companion warned him. "The Pokemon our boss gave us are strong and powerful, that's true, but this is a legendary Pokemon we're talking about... not your usual run-of-the-mill Pokemon!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know..." the boy called Damien replied annoyedly. "Heck, can I at least feel proud of having some strong Pokemon without all the hassle of training them? If only they gave me a decent Pokemon, instead of that stinky Charmander I was stuck with, I'd be the Kanto League Champion now..."

A cold glare from J forced everyone to remain silent. "Enough of idle chatter! Need I remind you that your duty is to obey orders? Now get ready, we are about to land our vehicle... or better say, we're hiding it underwater... and from here we'll reach Knot Island with the emergency capsules. Prepare yourselves. If we want our plan not to fail, we cannot overlook anything." she affirmed.

As soon as she said that, her minions immediately stood on attention, apologizing for having gotten distracted, and each one of them went to his or her own place. Only a minute later, the flying machine lowered its altitude even further, raising bigger waves from the surface of the water... and then began to sink, quickly disappearing in the depths. A passing Wailord who was filtering the water through its huge mouth looked at it for a second as it reached the bottom of the sea... then decided it was none of his business and went back on his way.

Still, someone else was watching J's humongous flying machine as it dropped down, and this one wasn't as indifferent to J's minions' actions. Well hidden among the shadows of the night, a diaphanous and elegant Ghost Pokemon observed until the sea returned to its smooth, pristine original state... then, without making a sound, she floated back towards the island, and more exactly towards the tall mountain dominating the whole landscape of Knot Island. She reached a certain altitude, weaving her way through the jagged rocks and the treetops, until she came in front of a jagged rocky wall... and floated right thorugh it. Her vaporous body swiftly penetrated through the stone and emerged in the natural galleries digging through the mountain, indifferent to the heat. Finally, after floating her way through the tunnels, the elegant Ghost Pokemon reached a large natural room and hovered towards a small, short-haired female figure sitting indian-style in the center of the room, as if she was in meditation. With a melodic voice resembling a song coming from far away, the ghost called to the young woman... who, in response, raised her head and looked at her ghostly friend.

"_Misdreeeeeavus..._"

"Oh, welcome back, Misdreavus..." the girl greeted her with a fresh, bubbly voice. "Tell me, what's the matter? Are there any problems?"

The ghost, an ethereal figure composed of violet gas, with catlike eyes and a head resembling a witch's hat, nodded, emitting her melodic voice once again... and the girl's happy tone sombered slightly as the Pokemon narrated, in her own way, what had happened and what she had seen. A few words later, the young girl nodded and climbed to her feet, dusting her dress as she did so.

"Thanks for telling me, Misdreavus..." she stated. "Then, what I feared is actually coming true... sadly, someone is trying to capture this island's legendary Pokemon... and not just him, if my predictions are correct. I wish I had been wrong, but alas..."

"_Dreee... vuuuus..._" her Misdreavus answered shaking her head. The girl cleared her voice and mentally scolded herself.

"Erm... you're right, Misdreavus, staying here and wishing I was wrong won't help us any. We hve to act now and stop those people before they can do too much damage. Wait, I'll try calling for the others now. I know you're strong and skilled, Misdreavus, but not even you can defeat all those people alone." the young girl answered. Her ghostly friend nodded while the girl, standing perfectly straight in the middle of the room, placed the tips of her index fingers on her temples and closed her eyes... then, she concentrated and sent out a telepathic message!

"_My friends... Misdreavus has just come back... what we all feared is about to happen... evil people came to this place to desecrate the sacred volcano and awaken the Fire Titan... please, come soon... come back... we have to stand together against these outsiders..._"

**oooooooooo**

Inother parts of the island, several Ghost-type Pokemon who were busy scouting through the island, well hidden by the darkness of the night, immediately stood at attention as they felt their trainer's telepathic message. A stocky, red-eyed Gengar raised his head and called to his companion, a quick-looking Banette. A massive Dusknoir who was searching among a group of stones by the seaside stopped abruptly and looked at a tranquil-looking Drifblim floating weightlessly in the air above him... who, in response, noded slowly and joined Dusknoir as the two floated towards the mountain once again. Meanwhile, in the forest, a glowing Rotom who was scouting around, aided by its natural luminescence, quickly turned around and began heading back to the mountain.

All of them had understood that it was the most important moment for them. They had to stop their enemies' plan at all costs... or the power of the Fire Titan would fall in the wrong hands!

**oooooooooo**

"There you go! Now your Pokemon are in perfect health!" Nurse Joy said cheerfully as she handed the Pokeballs back to Max and Hilde. Max's Mudkip and Poochyena, along with Hilde's Treecko and Wurmple, were once again energetic and lively, their earlier fatigue vanished without a trace. The bespectacled boy had to admit he was still quite impressed at how advanced medical technology was - only a few minutes were enough for a Pokemon to be completely healthy again.

"Thanks a lot, Nurse Joy." Hilde said, politely yet detachedly, as she and Max got their Pokeballs back. The two young trainers and May all bowed and thanked again, before the older girl pointed to a table in the opposite wing of the Pokemon Center.

"So, Max, Hilde, how about it? I think we can even take a break now, can't we? Max has been training his Mudkip all day, and I guess you, Hilde, have done the same. A little rest won't hurt!" she proposed. "And it might be a good excuse to let Poochyena and Wurmple out a little."

"Not a bad idea..." Max stated. Hilde shrugged, not really caring one way or another, and followed the siblings to a three-seat round table May had just then notived. Once they were seated, the younger trainers opened up their Pokeballs to let their Pokemon out...

"_Mudkip!_"

"_Pooch!_"

"_Treecko!_"

"_Wuuurrrrmple!_"

Each Pokemon, as soon as he or she was out, began looking at the others, as if they wanted to take each other's measure. However, Hilde's Wurmple seemed somewhat awed of Max's Treecko... and especially his Poochyena, who kept his intimidating demeanor even out of combat. So, the purple caterpillar retreated immediately towards his trainer, crawling up the surprised Hilde's leg and settling in her lap.

"Wurmple?" Hilde asked in puzzlement. When the caterpillar Pokemon cuddled up to her like a lazy cat, the girl sighed in resignation and began stroking Wurmple on his head with two fingers, never losing her trademark annoyed face. "Looks like my Wurmple isn't too social. That, or he just wants to be cuddled."

"You're not doing much to discourage him, to be fair..." Max commented, his new friend's Treecko nodding in assent. Then, the young boy turned to his Poochyena, stratching him behind an ear. "Okay, Poochyena... you see, Hilde's Wurmple is a little shy. Maybe you came across too harshly, see what I mean? Try not to be too hard on him, okay?"

Poochyena looked at his trainer, wrinkling his nose... then, he did the hyena equivalent to a shrug and grumbled what might have sounded as a yes. "_Yena!_" he barked, looking quite , for his part, sighed and shook his head. That Poochyena sure had an attitude...

"Well, Max... have you already decided on which Pokemon you'd like to catch next?" Hilde asked as he kept petting her Wurmple. The bespectacled boy turned serious all of a sudden and looked at his older sister, who scratched her cheek in understanding...

"Not really, Hilde..." Max answered, dividing his attention between Mudkip and Poochyena. "In fact, there is a Pokemon I'd love to have in my team now, and I'd be very happy if I could meet him again... Y'see, a couple years ago, as I was travelling through Hoenn with my sister and our friends, we helped out a Ralts who had lost his family, and I ended up becoming good friends with him... but we had to go our separate ways when his parents, a Gardevoir and a Kirlia, came to fetch him. Before he went away, though, we promised each other that, when I would become a Pokemon trainer, I would have him in my team, and he's become one of my main Pokemon. And now that I did become a trainer, I would love to meet that Ralts and his parents again... at least to see how they're doing. If I could choose which Pokemon to have in my team... I would choose him, no doubt!

Hilde's cold and distant demeanor thawed out a little, and the young girl widened her eyes a little. "Oh, I see... if that's the case, I hope you will find that Ralts. I think he'd love to be one of your Pokemon as well."

"Thanks, it sounds nice, when I hear it from you." Max answered.

The girl switched back to her earlier aloofness. "Hm. Do not misunderstand me, I don't really care about that or anything. After all, Ralts and his evolutions are excellent Pokemon, and we have to be rivals for the title of Hoenn Champion, I'd like my opponent to be a worthy one."

"Oookay..." May answered with a slight smile. She had already seen this tactic of seeming disinterest enough times to recognize it, and she sort of suspected what it truly meant... from a certain rose-obsessed green-haired prettyboy! "Well, but until then, Hilde, how about you travel with me and Max and train together with us? I think we could help each other out, and when you're with friends, it's more pleasant to travel!"

Max looked at his older sister in surprise, as Mudkip's eyes shone in excitement and Poochyena grunted in disinterest... but before anyone could say anything, Hilde shook her head.

"Thanks, May, but I'm a lone wolf. Travelling with others just doesn't agree with me." she said simply. "And then again... I have my own training method, and you have yours. To each his own."

"As you prefer..." Max answered, not knowing whether to be sorry or relieved. For his part, Mudkip sighed in disappointment, and Poochyena kept his distant attitude, as Treecko twirled the blade of grass he had in his mouth, as if saying that he knew all along that this would be the result. "Well, that means we'll still meet from time to time during the journey... that's what happened with my sis and Drew, after all..."

Max ended his sentence with a knowing grin in his sister's direction, and May blushed in embarassment and murmured something to make him shut up. Hilde, on the other hand, had no outward reaction other than shrugging as he stood up, laying her Wurmple on her right shoulder. "Maybe... I certainly wouldn't mind. For the moment, though, I guess we'll part ways here. There's still some time before dinnertime, and I'd like to use it to train my Wurmple a little. So... see you next time, whenever that is. Good luck."

"See you next time..." Max answered. Hilde's demeanor was quite strange, he had to say. He just couldn't see how a girl her age could manage to always seem angry...

"See you, Hilde..." May waved to Hilde as the younger girl and her Treecko stepped out of the Pokemon Center, turning one last time to say goodbye. Then, they left, leaving the two siblings seated at the table, and quite surprised.

"She's... a rather strange girl, I'd say..." May affirmed, still looking at the Pokemon Center's doors closing.

Max rubbed his forehead. "I can see that, sis... as I said, I don't really know her, but she's clearly the kind of person who doesn't use two words when she can use one."

"Yeah..." May answered, before standing up and stretching a little. "Anyway... Hilde was right when she said that there's still time before dinner. What do you say, Max? Shall we go out and train our Pokemon a little?"

For once, Max agreed with his sister completely. "Hmm... okay, I'm game! I think it could be a good idea! Mudkip, Poochyena, what about you? My sister and her Pokemon will teach us few things, I think it's a good idea to take her lessons!"

"_Mudkip!_"

"_Pooch! Pooch!_"

Both Pokemon agreed with their trainer, who noticed that the grey hyena cub already seemed more enthusiastic about fighting on his side...

**oooooooooo**

It had been a fun evening in Pewter City's Gym, and everybody had enjoyed the time spent with Brock's family, chatting about what had happened in those last years, and exchanging fun facts and happenings before the time for sleep came - it was midnight at least when everybody decided to turn in for the night. The next morning, after a good breakfast and a few more preparatives for what was shaping up to be a short yet intense journey to Pallet Town, Brock's family had reunited in front of the Gym to say goodbye to the aspiring breeder and wish him good luck... and four of Brock's Pokemon, namely Geodude, Steelix, Crobat and Sudowoodo, were with them. The last one of the Pokemon was standing beside Forrest and was looking at his trainer with some sadness.

"So, Brock, my dear boy... I hope you will make a safe journey!" Flint said, nodding with pride in front of his eldest son, and Geodude, Steelix and Crobat stood near Brock. "I'm sure your Pokemon will be very happy to travel with you once again, and I guess you'll have a bit of training to catch up on."

"Yeah... I've kinda neglected that part, lately..." the dark-skinned boy answered, before getting affectionately near Sudowoodo. "And for what concerns Sudowoodo here, I'm sure Forrest will take good care of him, at least until I'm back from my journey. Sorry for not taking you with me in this latest part of my journey, my friend... but I'll be back soon, count on that! For the moment, I'm leaving you with Dad, Mom and my siblings, I'm sure you'll like staying with them!"

"_Sudowoodo!_" the imitator Pokemon exclaimed energetically. His trainer smiled affably, a pang of nostalgia hitting him as he remembered when his Pokemon was just a determined, spunky Bonsly. Time went by so quickly...

The scene reminded Ash of another friend he had not seen in a while, and who, Ash had to admit, had been sadly neglected - his Pidgeot, whom he had set free just a little before going to Johto, and to whom he had promised to come back one day. Three years had gone by since that moment... who knew how he was doing, and if he was bitter for that unfulfilled promise...

"Okay, Sudowoodo... see you soon, then! Forrest, I'm leaving Sudowoodo to you... I'm sure you, Mom and Dad will take good care of him!" Brock said, his brother answering with a thumbs-up sign.

"No problems, big bro! When you're back, you'll see Sudowoodo will be even stronger than he is now!" Forrest promised. "After all, being a Gym Leader is kind of in our blood, right?"

Lola giggled in amusement. "Yeah, that's pretty much it! And I'll make sure Sudowoodo enjoys it here, just like Geodude and the others did... right, guys?"

The three Pokemon all agreed, Geodude by raising a rocky fist in the air, Steelix by roaring loudly, and Crobat by spreading his magnificent wings. then, they all turned to Brock and let him call them into their Pokeballs, ready to begin a new journey along their trainer. Brock recalled them one at the time and, with moved excitement, placed them in his belt.

"Very well then... it was nice to see you again, and I promise we'll meet again soon enough!" Brock said to his family. "Take care of yourselves, okay?"

"Thanks, son! Same to you, and have a safe journey!" Flint answered as Ash, Pikachu, Dawn and Brock walked away, waving their hands.

"_Pikachu!_" the electric mouse squeaked to Sudowoodo, who waved one of his "branches" in his and Brock's direction.

"_Sudowoodo!_"

"Goodbye, Mrs. Lola, Mr. Flint..." Dawn called. "See you soon, kids! There are many more things about Sinnoh I'd like to tell you when we come back!"

"Thanks, Dawn! See you soon!" Brock's siblings all answered

"Thanks for your hospitality! See you!" Ash concluded, before the team finally reached the edge of the town and slowly vanished from sight, heading towardsViridian Forest...

"Aaaah, time sure goes by quickly..." Lola sighed, hugging her husband. "Brock was just a child when I went away... and now, he's become such a strong and mature young man... I'm sorry for not having been around him and his siblings as they grew up..."

"Let's not dwell on this too much, dear... the important thing is, now we've all met back, and we know we can count on each other... right, kids?" Flint asked, turning to his younger children, who all nodded in assent... and to Sudowoodo, who kept looking at the horizon, promising himself he would become stronger for when his trainer would be back.

"_Sudowoodo!_"

**oooooooooo**

Paul frowned as he looked out of the window of the electric train taking him to Viridian City, towards the sun peeking through the faraway mountains. It was almost like going back in time, when he was just ten and was just starting out his journey in the world of Pokemon... after his brother Reggie's shameful defeat that had brought him to show everyone how different he was from him. He had already stepped on those roads, when he was younger... and now that he was doing so again, he had to admit that it was a trip down Memory Lane...

Still, he had never been the kind of person to waste time on reminiscing, so he shook his head and imposed himself to concentrate on the real reason he was there, only joined by the sound of the electric train dashing on the rails. He had to dismount at Viridian Station... and from there, take the road to Mount Silver, to start his special training. He couldn't afford distractions, or to think how things might have been.

His eyes caught a snowy peak shining with silver reflexes in the distance, surrounded by disquieting stormy clouds. This was obviously Mount Silver, the purple-haired teen thought to himself, recognizing it from the pictures he had seen.

The next part of his journey had just started. Now, all he had to see was if it was going to be successful...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: There it is! A few more surprises have been revealed in this chapter, and an old enemy - while a very minor one - has rejoined the fray! Meanwhile, we get to know more of the girl who will later become Max's main competition... what wil happen? Well, I'm not going to tell you that right here, am I? I'll try to put up next chapter as soon as I can. In the meantime, reviews are much appreciated, and I hope you enjoyed the story so far!**

**See you soon! **


	10. Spreading Wings

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back, everyone! Once again, I hope you didn't have to wait too long between updates!**

**Last chapter, we've left Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn at the Pewter City Gym, for a nice reunion with Brock's family... and now, we keep travelling down Memory Lane, as this chapter will feature a surprise reunion, and a moment many of you were certainly waiting for! Of course, Team Rocket will once again try to cause trouble, but I guess it wouldn't be a Pokemon story without those lovable buffoons! **

**Anyway, not all is sunshine and games, and in fact Zoey and her friends will have to deal with the disaster that befell Snowpoint City... that will be a somewhat darker part, so know what to expect.**

**And... didn't anyone recognize that Damien guy who is working under J? Really? ^_^**

**Oh, well... anyway, it's time for the new chapter! I hope you'll enjoy it... and please, feel free to review to your heart's content! I may not be a review freak, but I'd like to know whether my work is good or not.**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 10 - Spreading Wings**

"Oh, for crying out loud, what on Earth is going on here? I've been waiting for this stupid ship to Hoenn for the longgest time!" Ursula exclaimed, truly at her wits' end. She had already bought the ticket, prepared her luggage and gotten ready for the journey, and for the third time in a row, she got no other answer other than the fact that the ship wouldn't have departed because of weather conditions. Just what was going on, and why was nobody finding asolution to this?

The agent Ursula was talking with shrugged, sincerely sorry about not being able to help the young peach-haired girl in a more significant way. "We're sorry, miss..." he said, recognizing one of the Sinnoh Grand Festival finalists. "There are still there strange perturbations, and a storm could happen any moment... even a ship as large as the one we're using would be in danger now. I'm sorry, but travelling to Hoenn by ship is a no-no, at the moment."

Ursula felt herself shivering in rage, but she understood that there was nothing she could do other than seethe about it. "Ugh... okay, guess I'll have to live with that... though it's a real shame to have spent money on a ticket I'm not even going to use... darn..." she murmured. "And while I'm twiddling my thumbs here, Dawn and Zoey must be out there, training like crazy... I can't fall behind! I want to show them who the best Coordinator is... but where can I get my Pokemon some decent training? Rats... well, let's see what the departure table says..."

As she got away from the crowd, murmuring in anger under her breath, Ursula looked up to the electric departure table, upon which the times for the confirmed ships were showing up. She was once again annoyed that the only remaining ships available were those going to Johto, Kanto and Orre. For a moment, she shivered at the idea that someone could actually be insane enough to want to go to that hellhole called Orre...

"Ugh... I wouldn't go there if you paid me..." she muttered with a comically disgusted face, an angry vein popping up on her forehead. "Well, guess I have no choice but to go to either Johto or Kanto... where nobody has probably even heard of coordinating contests! Meh, it can't be helped. After all, I need a place where I can train my Pokemon... but I guess I'd better ask them first."

The peach-haired girl stepped out of the ticket office and sat on a bench outside, calling out her Pokemon one by one. "Okay, guys... come out for a second, I need to ask you something!" Ursula said. Beams of red light cascaded out of her Pokeballs, revealing a very varied Pokemon team: a Gabite, the first evolved form of Gible and Garchomp's pre-evolution, other than Ursula's strongest Pokemon; a Plusle and a Minun; a Jigglypuff... and finally, the latest two additions in Ursula's team, a Flareon and a Vaporeon. They all stood to attention before their trainer, who stroked each one of them on the head affectionately before asking her question.

"Alright, everyone... I guess we can forget about Hoenn." she bitterly stated, feeling somewhat guilty for giving her Pokemon such disappointing news. "There seem to be weather problems... and nobody is doing anything to find a solution! Hmph... Still, if you'd like, there is an alternative..."

"_Jigglypuff?_" the singing Pokemon asked, blinking hopefully.

"Well, we could go to Kanto or Johto, for example... there are ships for Orre, too, but you wouldn't catch me dead in that pit of tigers!" Ursula answered. "Anyway, what do you say about it? Not that there are Coordinating contests there, but at least we can train and refine our technique. You get to choose, do we stay here in Sinnoh, or do we go somewhere else?"

"_Gabite!_" Gabite roared, pointing at the port. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what the landshark meant... and even the two Eevee evolutions gave an affirmative answer. Plusle and Minun waved their arms up and down, themselves agreeing with their companions' choice... and finally, Jigglypuff winked at her trainer, who just grinned in assent.

"Perfect, then we're all set on this! I will exchange my ticket for a ticket to Kanto, and we'll begin our training there. It won't be as effective as the one we would be doing in Hoenn, but at least we'll be able to see a few new things. And we can always reach Hoenn from there, anyway. Well, for now you should return. We'll probably depart tomorrow, and you need to be well-rested! This is our first journey abroad, after all..."

All her Pokemon agreed enthusiastically, and the young girl recalled them in their respective Pokeballs before standing up and walking to a public phone. Before exchanging her ticket and jumping on the ship to Kanto, she still needed to warn her parents of this sudden change of plans...

**oooooooooo**

"Aaaah, Viridian Forest! This was where I caught my very first Pokemon!" Ash exclaimed as he stretched happily, filling his lungs with the fresh, scented air of the forest as he and his travelling companions made their way through the tall grass, admiring the sights around them. Dawn, in particular, seemed enthralled by the woods' simple beauty, and by the plentiful flowers and diverse Bug Pokemon running around them. Other than common Caterpie or Weedle, it was possible to glimpse some Spinarak or Ledyba, who had recently migrated there from Johto.

"Really, Ash? I didn't know that!" the young girl said, her curiosity piqued. "Do you still remember how it happened? And which Pokemon was it?"

"Well... it was a common Caterpie, in fact..." the young boy admitted, looking at a group of far away bushes and reminiscing with nostalgia. Had four years really gone by since he and Misty had passed through those woods? He still remembered how much he had teased her for her fear of Bug Pokemon... "Yeah, it was still the beginning of my journey, when I and Pikachu still didn't quite get along... and shortly after, my Caterpie evolved into a Metapod, and finally into a Butterfree! It was a really exciting moment... and who knows where my Butterfree is now. I set him free when thereproductive season started and now... well, I hope he's happy with his beloved!"

"I guess so..." Dawn answered sadly, as she admired a small group of Pidgey fluttering among the branches. Ash and Brock looked that way as well, and Pikachu, remembering who Ash's second Pokemon had been, raised one of his short paws as if asking for permission to speak.

"_Pika pi! Pika ka pikachu pika pikachu?_" he exclaimed in his apparently gibberish language. Ash remained surprised for a moment... then, he rubbed the back of his head with a goofy laugh!

"Hehehee... right, Pikachu, you've got a point here! This is also where I caught my second Pokemon, a Pidgeotto..." Ash remembered. "It wasn't exactly a roaring success at first, since I used Caterpie to try and catch him... I didn't remember birds eat caterpillars!"

"Gee, so that's true... we are all kinda clumsy when we start out as trainers!" Dawn joked. A distant buzz belonging to a roaming Beedrill scared her for a second, and the blue-haired girl stopped for a second before continuing her speech. "Er... anyway, where is your Pidgeotto now? Did you set him free as well?"

"Yeah... in fact, just before I departed for the Orange Islands, Pidgeotto had evolved into a Pidgeot... he had wanted to stay with a group of Pidgey and Pidgeotto to protect them from a flock of Spearow. I... had promised him that I would have been back to see him again, but... with all that happened, I always managed to forget about it... I know, I know, that's no excuse, but still..."

"Well, since we're going back to Pallet Town, you're still in time to make good on that promise!" Brock, always the voice of reason, stated. "I think that, if you go to him and apologize, Pidgeot will understand and forgive you. After all, you have nothing to lose by doing so, right?"

"You're right, Brock... this time, I am going to remember that!" Ash affirmed, somewhat more convinced. "I will use these days to go back to the place where I last saw Pidgeot and his flock, and..."

Pikachu suddenly raised his ears, his demeanor turning dead serious. "_Pika?_" he squeaked, raising a hand and telling his companions to stop right there. Surprised, Ash, Dawn and Brock stopped right then and there, a slight rustling sound coming from the ground as they halted...

And a split second later, the trap was sprung! The grass, which had seemed perfectly normal until then, raised half an inch in the air to reveal a net of entwined ropes that quickly closed in on the three friends, coiling tightly around them and raising them in the air among short screams of surprise, before leaving them to dangle helplessly from the branches of a huge tree! Pikachu squeaked in alarm, as Ash and his friends tried to struggle against the trap...

"_Pika pi! Pika ka, pika chu!_" theelectric mouse exclaimed... until a glass dome fell on him, cutting him off in mid-sentence!

"Oh no... Pikachu!" Ash tried struggling harder to detangle himself from both the net and his friends' bodies, in the attempt to reach a Pokeball... but the space was just too crammed, and even Dawn and Brock were struggling to get free, which only made things harder for the young boy. "Ugh... hey, guys, would you kindly move? I... tch... must reach my Pokeballs..."

"We'd gladly do it, Ash..." Brock answered, remarkably keeping his cool. "But... we don't have much room here... we can't move much ourselves!"

"Who on Earth might have placed such a trap?" Dawn asked herself, before abruptly stopping. "No, wait. I... think I can answer that one for myself!"

Of course, the answer took the form of a triumphant laugh, and a huge hot air balloon saped like a Meowth's head soaring above the treetops, dragging the glass dome Pikachu was trapped in along with itself - isolating dome, Ash could bet on that. "Hohohohooo! Welcome home, twerp!" Jessie exclaimed as she, James and Meowth triumphantly dropped in. "Still, we're playing in our home turf as well, as you can plainly see! And if you don't mind, we'll now be taking your Pikachu and bringing him to our boss!"

"And I wouldn't try to wriggle my way free, if I were you!" James added. "At this point, I don't think it would do you any good... that net is pretty tight, and you won't be able to reach your Pokeballs! Let it never be said that Team Rocket does not account for everything! Heheheee..."

Meowth nodded in satisfaction. "You see how our traps work better when we spring them before saying our motto? And now... come on, do your thing!"

"With pleasure, Meowth!" James answered as he produced a red rose right out of nowhere! Then, taking advantage of the fact that their captive audience - in every sense of the word - was not going anywhere, the two clumsy criminals began to recite their trademark motto.

"Prepare for trouble, that's our moment of glory!"

"And make it double, it's a whole new story!"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people in our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our power to the starts above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket, blasting off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth! That's right!"

"_Wobbuffet!_" the ever-present Wobbuffet exclaimed in his usual salute!

"There... I knew it... now that Team Rocket has gone back to their old motto, they're not stopping anytime soon..." Ash commented to himself... then, he tried to shake the net holding him and his friends, in a rather vain attempt to break or at least loosen the ropes. "Anyway... you two! What are you thinking? Give Pikachu back, or else..."

Jessie's laughter echoed out again. "Hohohohoooo! Or else what, twerp? You're gonna yell at me? Now you're all tied up to a branch, and you can't even send your Pokemon out, so... very sorry about that,but this time we get to win! Without even sending our Pokemon out, I might add!"

"So... we say goodbye to you, and we'll make sure to send your regards to the boss as well! See ya, and be safe!" James concluded. Before Ash's powerless eyes, the hot air balloon took altitude and dragged the - electric-proof, as Ash had suspected - glass dome Pikachu was trapped in along with it. The electric mouse was shooting one thunderbolt after the other in a vain attempt to get free.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed, futilely calling for his friend.

"Darn..." Dawn tried to get free from the net and reach for her Pokeballs, but it was so cramped in there that she had no chance. "If only I could get Togekiss out, then we'd be set!"

"Hehee... sorry 'bout that, kids, but we won this time!" Meowth taunted them. "Well, to make you feel better, since you've been winning for so many episodes now, you can be content with what you've got! See ya!"

A warlike scream, similar to the keening of a bird of prey, interrupted the criminal trio... and Jessie, James and Meowth looked around in amazement, asking themselves where that came from. Thanks to his particularly keen sight, Meowth was the first to notice something flying in the hot air balloon's direction... and judging from the colours, number and size, it couldn't be anything else than a smallflock of Pidgeys! What alarmed the feline Pokemon, though, was the fact that the leader of the flock was a large, majestic Pidgeot, whose colourful plumage seemed to shine in the light of the sun as it soared towards the Meowth balloon...

"Huh? Guys, I dunno about you, but I have the uneasy feeling those Pidgeys have a grudge against us..." Meowth commented. "And look at that Pidgeot leading them!"

Jessie and James turned in the direction Meowth was pointing in... and they both frowned as they glimpsed the flock of Flying Pokemon executing a spectacular maneuver, like a squadron of fighter jets, as they followed the Pidgeot leader along two perfect lines. The Team Rocket members didn't much like how the pigeon Pokemon seemed to be readying an attack en masse against them...

"I don't like those birds at all..." Jessie commented, extracting a Pokeball. "We need a hand here, Yanmega! Come out!"

"Carnivine!" James exclaimed. "I choose you!"

The enormous dragonfly appeared in front of the hot air balloon and immediately took to the air, while the carnivorous plant wrapped his vines around James in a show of affection as soon as it appeared! The blue-haired young man immediately tried to wriggle free of that suffocating embrace, with little success. "Ugh... Carnivine, glad to see you're so loving and all, but this isn't the moment! Please, help us out with those Pidgeys!"

"_Carnivine!_" the carnivorous plant answered before turning his attention on the incoming Pidgeys. Their Pidgeot leader was flying circles around Team Rocket's balloon, like some sort of flying shark circling its prey.

Meanwhile, even if trapped inside the glass dome, Pikachu was able to glance upwards, curious to see his mysterious rescuer. There was something familiar about that Pokemon, though Pikachu couldn't quite put his finger on it... it was a reminescence of a few years earlier...

Waitaminute!

Pikachu's ears perked up in surprise... and he also felt some shame for not remembering things right away! Of course! How could such a thing slip from his mind? There was no doubt, that Pidgeot leading his smaller brethren against Team Rocket was no one else than...

"Quick, Carnivine! Shoot down those Pidgeys with Bullet Seed!" James ordered his Grass Pokemon, who quickly took aim and began shooting an hail of seed against the small bird Pokemons, hitting some of them and forcing the flock to disperse... but only to execute a flawless diversive maneuver and dive to attack again, their wings beating furiously in an attempt to kick up enough wind to stop the hot air balloon

"Ugh... hold on tight, guys!" Jessie exclaimed. "Those little runts are doing a mass Gust attack to topple us! Stop them, Yanmega!"

The Ogre Garner Pokemon let out a frightening buzz and her incredibly keen eyes caught Pidgeot flying around the balloon, getting closer and closer each second. Immediately, she rose up in the air and sped towards Pidgeot, unleashing an Ancient Power attack against him. A few floating rocks appeared around the dragonfly Pokemon lithe body, before being chucked telecinetically against the enemy... but Pidgeot's sight was not any less keen that Yanmega's and the Flying Pokemon quickly took notice of the danger.

Yanmega's stones were about a metre away from him when Pidgeot suddenly seemed to split in two identical versions of himself, leaving an after-image of himself which was harmlessly pierced by the Ancient Power attack. Yanmega could only gape in amazement before an heavy feather-covered wings smacked her hard, sending her towards the Team Rocket balloon. Luckily for her, Carnivine extended one of his vines and caught her by the tail, keeping her from losing too much altitude. The gigantic dragonfly flew upright again and nodded towards Carnivine in order to thank her, then turned to Pidgeot right when the giant pigeon was trying to attack again! The indignated Yanmega retaliated with a powerful Bug Buzz attack, launching a barrage of sonic waves from her wings and striking Pidgeot head-on, forcing him to fly backwards a little. Meanwhile, Carnivine was using his vines to keep the more aggressive Pidgeys away. Two of the small birds had managed to evade the carnivorous plant's attacks and were now trying to strike the hot air balloon, but they were sent away by Wobbuffet's Counter attack.

"Look, guys... that's one heck of a battle up there!" Brock commented, looking at the small flock of Flying Pokemon holding Team Rocket's balloon in place. "That Pidgeot sure knows his stuff..."

"We can see that... and he brought a nice number of Pidgey too..." Dawn answered. "But... why did they intervene like this?"

"I... have no idea..." Ash said, but in truth, he had the same strange feeling Pikachu had had earlier, and the idea was making his heart race. What if that Pidgeot was actually... his Pidgeot? The more Ash stood watching the battle, the more convinced he was...

In the skies above Viridian Forest, Yanmega and Pidgeot were entangled in battle once again, and while the giant garner had a type disadvantage, she was putting up a great fight! She and the giant pigeon were matching each other blow for blow, clashing in midair and then getting away from each other, without making much progress. Pidgeeot managed to catch Yanmega off guard for a second and smacked her with a powerful Wing Attack, but the giant dragonfly was able to recover quickly and retailated with an Air Cutter attack, striking with her razor-sharp wings. Pidgeot screeched in indignation as a few red and yellow feathers were cut off the thick plumage on top of his head, but reacted quickly by rapidly beating his wings in front of himself, launching a Whirlwind attack that forced Yanmega away from him and gave him some breathing room. Then, he called for his little brethren, who quickly disengaged Team Rocket and flew at their leader''s side... and Pidgeot quickly began summoning a group of whirlwinds around himself and his pre-evolved forms.

"Hmm... that must be a Tailwind attack..." Brock commented. "It allows a Pokemon to greatly increase both his own speed and that of his allies, for a short time. That Pidgeot must be quite well-trained for him to know this move."

Ash smiled almost involuntarily. Well, that was his Pidgeot, after all...

"Hey, guys, what are they doing?" Meowth asked, not liking how this was going. Carnivine, Yanmega and Wobbuffet tried to keep an eye on the Flying-types, but even so, they were caught unaware when the small birds sped towards the hot air balloon and the rope holding Pikachu in midair! Some of the Pidgeys struck the rope with a series of quick and powerful Wing Attacks, causing it to snap... and two more of them caught the glass dome before it could fall, saving Pikachu under Team Rocket's incredulous eyes!

"Hey! You can't take that Pikachu away from us! We stole him fair and square!" an enraged Jessie exclaimed. "Carnivine, Yanmega, what are you doing? You have to stop them, now!"

"Er, Jessie..." James murmured, faerfully pointing in front of himself. "Not to rain on your parade or anything, but... those Pidgeys are the last of our worries! Look what that guy is doing!"

Jessie and Meowth switched their attention to the gigantic, multicolored pigeon circling the balloon... just in time to see him launch a spectacular Sky Attack, his body turning into some sort of torpedo and speeding towards his target! Its sharp beak struck true, causing the balloon to explode with a deafening boom and propelling the clumsy trio and their Pokemon in the upper regions of the stratosphere!

"Aaaaargh! I can't believe this! Just when we had them beat!" Jessie screamed, uselessly flailing her arms around.

"And we had taken their Pokemon out of commission, too..." James murmured, as his Carnivine went back to hugging him affectionately!

Meowth shook his head in desolation. "What can I say, guys... looks like even in fanfiction, we're out of luck..." he murmured. Yanmega buzzed in irritation, swearing revenge against that Pidgeot... and then, Team Rocket once again became a twinkle in the sky, accompanied by Wobbuffet's call!

"Team Rocket... IS BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"

"_Wobbuffet!_"

Meanwhile, the remaining Pidgeys were trying to get Ash, Dawn and Brock free from Team Rocket's trap, using their beaks to sever the ropes, and finally causing the three friends to drop to the ground in a none-too-elegant manner and with their faces in the dust! Ash stood up first and dusted his trousers as he looked at the small bird Pokemon fluttering around him and his friends.

"Owww... thanks, guys! Maybe the landing wasn't perfect, but I can live with it! Dawn, Brock... you alright?" asked Ash as his travelling companions stood up.

"Yeah, none the worse for wear!" Dawn quickly assured him as she dusted her skirt and placed her hat back on her head. "What about Pikachu? Is he alright?"

"Yes, fortunately..." Ash said with a relieved sigh, as he watched a copule Pidgeys gently drop down the glass cage Team Rocket had placed Pikachu in. The electric mouse shook off the glass dome and ran to his trainer, jumping in his arms. "Pikachu! You okay, right? That Pidgeot that helped us... did you manage to see him well enough?"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu nodded. "_Pika pi, pika pika chu!_"

Ash's expression of wonder soon turned into a joyous smile: then, it really was true... "Is... is that so, Pikachu? The Pidgeot that saved us was actually... He... really came for us?" When Dawn looked quizzically at him, Ash cleared his throat and explained. "About that Pidgeotto I spoke of... He's the one who's come to help us now! Pikachu recognized him... though I did feel like I knew that Pidgeot from somewhere! Yes, that's him... my Pidgeot!"

"What? Are... are you serious?" Dawn exclaimed, both surprised and happy for her friend. "I... I'm happy about it... but why did you feel like you already knew him?"

"That... I can't say, Dawn..." Ash answered as the Pidgeys roosted all around them, as if they wanted to create an improvised audience for their leader, who was descending wings akimbo, his feathers majestically waving in the wind. Pikachu and his friends protected their eyes from the dust Pidgeot was kicking up, while Ash stepped forward enthusiastically to speak with his old companion. Brock and Dawn stood apart, knowing that it was a very important moment for Ash, and not wishing to disturb him, and Pidgeot landed and spread his wings once again, his eyes bearing some - in Ash's opinion, perfectly understandable - resentment...

Much to his chagrin, Ash found himself at a loss for words. What can you say to a friend you haven't seen in four years, and to whom you've made a promise you never kept? Which words would be right to express your regret? Ash and Pikachu did not know how to start... and Pidgeot's cold, scolding attitude didn't help matter any...

"Er..." Ash tried to buy himself a little time. "Pidgeot... first of all... well... I... need to thank you for bailing us out... and for chasing Team Rocket away. You... did us all a great favor and..."

The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Pidgeot and the other Pidgeys stood in silence, not moving a feather, and kept staring at Ash and Pikachu, as if expecting something from them. The boy and his Pokemon looked around them, and Ash briefly looked at Brock as if he could give him a quick tip on how to get out of that sticky situation. Finally, after clearing his throat, Ash stepped forward and bowed his head a little. "And... I wanted to say that I'm sorry, Pidgeot. You've got every right to be angry at me... true, I did promise to come visit you, four years ago, and yet I never came. I... was too excited to see the world, challenge more leagues and become a Pokemon Master... and I never made time for you... that's all my fault. I know nothing of what I'm saying justifies me, but... please, believe me, I'm sorry for not keeping my promise, and know that, if you don't want to be my friend anymore... I can understand."

Pidgeot seemed to frown at that and, with a brief chirp and a nod of his head, motioned for Ash to come closer. The young champion and Pikachu were somewhat dumbfound, but they did as they were asked, while Dawn and Brock kept asking themselves how the giant pigeon would have reacted...

"What's going to happen now?" Dawn asked in a somewhat worried tone. "That Pidgeot looks quite angry... not that I can blame him, of course..."

"Let's just wait and see..." Brock answered. Ash and Pikachu were now in front of Pidgeot, who kept staring at them for a while...

Finally, Pidgeot reared a wing back... and used it to slap Ash across the face, to the point where Ash lost his footing and dropped to the ground with a pained grunt! Dawn grit her teeth and winced - the sound of the impact was heard all the way where she and Brock were standing!

"Owww... bet that stung..." the blue-haired girl commented.

Ash slowly picked himself up, rubbing his bruised cheek... and, as Pikachu was looking at him worriedly, he smiled and nodded his head to Pidgeot. "Guess I had that one coming, huh?" he asked with a brief chuckle, before Pidgeot - who had seemed angry and aloof until then - smiled himself, letting out some melodic calls resembling a real pigeon's.

"_Pidgeot, pidgeot... pidgeot!_" the Flying-type exclaimed as he extended a wing to his former trainer! Pikachu, after a brief moment of surprised, chuckled himself and translated with a series of high-pitched squeaks.

"Oh... really? Well, glad to know that! Heheheee..." Ash exclaimed with a goofy laugh, before turning to Dawn and Brock. "Well... Pidgeot said that Wing Attack he slapped me with forgives me! He just told me... never to do that again!"

Dawn chuckled and rolled her eyes. So the situation wasn't really as serious as it looked! In turn, Brock shook his head with an amused smile and placed the index and middle fingers of his right hand on his temple, while Ash and Pikachu joyfully clung to Pidgeot's wing... and the Pidgey, pleased that the matter had been resolved in the best way, began to coo and chirp merrily.

"Anyway ... I'm glad to see you again, Pidgeot!" Ash replied to his first Flying Pokemon. "And again... I regret not having kept my promise. I will try to be more responsible from now on... I learned a lot in my travels around the world, but I see that for some things, I still have a long way to go..."

"Pidgeot ..." said the giant pigeon, with a shrug - as if to say there was no need to think that much. Then, intrigued by the reason why Ash and his companions had returned to Kanto, raised his head and chirped again, which Pikachu translated for everyone...

"Pidgeot wants to know why, after having been away for so long, we decided to come back ..." Ash said. "Well, Pidgeot, let's just say that... the fact is, I wanted to see my friends and my mom in Kanto, and furthermore, Professor Oak... you remember him, right... spoke of a problem for which he needs my help. So... I and my friends... by the way, this is Dawn, a Pokemon Coordinator from Sinnoh..." At these words, Dawn took a step forward and greeted Pidgeot with a wave of her hand. "...as I was saying, my friends and I were the people whom Prof. Oak could trust better... So here we are! We arrived in Pewter City last night, and now we were going through the Viridian Forest to go back to Pallet Town... even though I think we will still have a couple of days of travelling ahead of us..."

The giant pigeon frowned... then, with a stern gesture of his beak, he pointed to his back and spread his wings. "Pidgeot!" he exclaimed, making it very clear what his intentions were...

"What? Pidgeot says... that he can give us a lift?" Brock asked. "Pidgeot, we really appreciate your offer, but are you sure you can carry three people... with all their baggages? The way to Pallet is still quite long, and there's also the group of Pidgey and Pidgeotto you look after... "

"Pidgeot, Pidgeot!" said the giant pigeon, moving a wing in front of himself... then, he crouched low on the ground, opened both wings, and then motioned again for Ash and his friends to climb on him!

"Pika pika!" Pikachu answered, leaping on Pidgeot's back. And this time, there was no need for a translator to understand what he was saying!

"Hehe ... I think he said, 'Well, gentlemen, all aboard!'" Dawn commented with a small laugh, while everyone was busy taking his seat on Pidgeot's back...

**oooooooooo**

"Phew... and with that, I'd say we're done for today ..." Maylene sighed, feeling terribly tired and exhausted. She and her Pokemon, of which Machoke and Lucario were still out of their Pokeballs and close to her, had spent the whole day trying to help the people of Snowpoint City in taking out the piles of snow and rubble that littered the streets. Fortunately, the disaster was not as bad as she had feared ... but this did not mean that the city had gotten off lightly. Unfortunately, during the recue operations, three people were found dead, and two were still missing ...

Zoey and Candice, both of whom were sitting on an armchair in Snowpoint City's Pokemon Center, didn't feel much better than their friend... and the red-haired girl, with a sigh, stood with her back against the wall and stretched. "Yeah, for today... but there's still a lot of work to do... and some people are still missing. Unfortunately... " She said, looking with sadness at the Pokeball containing her faithful Gallade. The Psychic / Fighting Pokemon had worked hard that day, and had been able to rescue two boys from what was left of a house, but now it was so exhausted that Zoey didn't think he would be able to get out of his Pokeball the next day. They could only do so much in a single day...

Candice, in the meanwhile, remained sullenly silent, looking out the window and towards the snowflakes that slowly and solemnly rained down from the night sky. The atmosphere was strange, almost eerie... the silence seemed to palpable, and the fact that Candice, normally a cheerful and outgoing girl, had closed herself in that withdrawn silence, did not help. It was obvious that Candice was very upset by what had happened to her city, and both Zoey and Maylene wanted to do something to comfort her... or at least, to let her mind be more at ease..

"Three people have died in this disaster ..." Candice finally said, her dreary voice alone breaking the silence of the Pokemon Center room. "Two were mere teens, another one was a wife and a mother who left a husband and children... I can't believe all this happened... Since Snowpoint City was founded, more than three hundred years ago... the mountain has always been our friend! "

"Candice..." Maylene murmured. The Ice Pokemon expert hugged her knees, bowing her head, and continued to speak, as if not even noticing her two friends.

"And while all this was happening, I was away..." she said. "If only I had been there, maybe we could have avoided all this... maybe I could help out more with the rescue operations, and those people would still be alive ... I feel like it's my fault for not being able to be here before..."

"But... how could you know? I don't think anyone could predict that, all of a sudden, an avalanche would have come down and struck, could they?" Zoey asked, placing a hand on Candice's shoulder. The black-haired girl looked up... and before she could answer, Zoey kept speaking. "Nobody could predict that... and it's useless to think how things might have gone. None of us can predict the future, right? And... well... look at things from this point of view... maybe if you had stayed here, you'd been involved too. And now there might be four victims instead of three. I know it sounds cold, but... well... it's true! So... do not blame yourself for that. Believe me, it's not healthy..."

"Zoey is right, who could have predicted all of this?" Maylene went on. "There was nothing we could have done anyway..."

It was true, and Candice knew as much... but the idea that his city had been struck by such a disaster was difficult to cope with. After a moment of silence, the Ice trainer rubbed the sole of her shoe on the wooden floor, and gave her answer. "That's... well, you're right, girls, I understand this... but... but still, I can't wrap my head around this! What could have happened to trigger an avalanche so suddenly, like this? I... I have a feeling that it was not natural causes... don't ask me why, but I feel like this..."

Maylene rubbed her forehead and got up from her chair, walking to the window on the other side of the room and looking towards the mountain that stood over the entire city. For a moment, the little karate master stood there, looking out of the window and making her friends wonder what she was thinking... Then, Maylene nodded, gripped her hand into a fist, and turned towards her companions!

'Well, why don't we go find out for ourselves, girls?" she asked, receiving two surprised looks in return. "No, I'm not kidding! After all, me and Candice are two Sinnoh League Gym Leaders, and Zoey is a very good coordinator... I am sure we can face such a journey... and maybe discover what's behind all of this! If that's the case... we will find the ones responsible, and we will make sure they can cause no more harm! Don't you agree?"

"Machoke?" Maylene's Machoke answered with a surprised look. Zoey and Candice didn't look much different...

"You mean... to go up there on Mt. Coronet... and search for the cause of this avalanche?" Candice answered, getting back some of her spunk. "Are... are you serious, Maylene? And... if we do find out that there's someone behind it, what do we do?"

Zoey, however, seemed to take Maylene's idea in serious consideration. "Still... I can't say I disagree with that!" she said. "I agree, we should go take a look up there... once our Pokemon are well rested, obviously! I am curious to know how could this happen myself... and maybe, if we discover the cause, we can prevent this disaster from happening again. Don't you agree, Candice? "

"Well ..." Snowpoint City's Gym Leader stood thinking for a few seconds. In fact, her friends were right... if the cause of the avalanche was still on Mt. Coronet... they might as well go and see what it was, in order to avoid problems in the future. The town was going to take several days to rebuild what was lost ... and in the meantime, if another avalanche had fallen, there was no telling what would have happened...

Finally, Candice weakly smiled and stood up, nodding vigorously! "Okay, then! You can count on Candice, too! We'll go there, and we'll ensure that this will not happen again, you have Candice's word! Staying here and chatting won't solve anything... "

Zoey seemed happy with this decision. "I'm glad to hear you say that, Candice!" she said '. "You seem to have gotten your spunk back! All right, Maylene, I agree with this idea as well! We let our Pokemonrest ... and then, we're of to Mt. Coronet to see what's going on! "

"Excellent!" Maylene exclaimed, a fist in the air. "Okay... Machoke, Lucario... you think you can handle this? It won't be a cakewalk, this should be clear enough. But... well, it will be a great workout, and we can lend Zoey and Candice a hand! What do you think? "

"Machoke!" said the muscular Fighting Pokemon, flexing his arm to show his biceps. Lucario didn't say a word, he just crossed his arms over his chest and nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, girls... you two are the best friends I could have!" Candice answered, feeling a lot more heartened now...

**oooooooooo**

"Sigh... okay, so the boss would like us to blindly dig in this stone wall, to search for traces of a legendary Pokemon?" a masked agent whined, angrily watching the jagged wall that stood before him and his group. "It's a drag to explore these darn tunnels already... now we even have to act like mine slaves?"

The three men who were at that moment in front of the stone wall, in the depths of a cave carved in the depths of Mount Ember, were among the same mysterious men to whom J had given orders to track down Moltres... and now, to get to work, they had covered their faces with some sort of gas mask that, instead of making them seem more threatening, gave them a rather ridiculous look. Not to mention the fact that, in the warm and dry those mysterious tunnels, that was not exactly the most comfortable clothing...

"Quit your complaining, Damien..." one of his companions muttered. "We will d whatever we need to... after all, Lady J doesn't make us work for free! After our organization's plan are successful, we will have in our hands the most powerful Pokemon on the face of the planet! Is that not reason enough to take some inconveniences?"

The agent named Damien growled unpleasantly. "Tch... well, better than with that retarded Charmander who could not even fight!" he said. "Okay, okay, let's give it a rest. So, in a nutshell... we have to do surveys for the excavation work beginning in a few days, right?"

"Exactly." the third person replied laconically. "So now we quit complaining and we get to..."

A fearful howl, like the wind blowing among the rocks, but amplified by dozens of times, echoed in the cave, and caused the three masked agents to jump up in fear... before a grinning Gengar came out of the shadows behind them, closely followed by an elegant smoky Pokemon with a necklace of red beads around his neck, and whose head was shaped somewhat like a witch's hat. His arms ended in a pair of fuzzy puffs of smoke where the hands should have been, and his eyes had cat-like pupils that regarded with a haughty disinterest the world around them.

"W... What?" Damien exclaimed. "Wh... where do these ghosts come from?"

As his companions pulled their Pokeballs out, Gengar stepped forward, grinning like a prankster who about to play a funny joke... while Migmagius remained neutral, floating eerily in the air, his eyes shining like two beacons in the night. And behind them, barely visible in the shadows, a female form was advancing calmly, almost distractedly playing with a Pokeball.

"Who are you to intrude in our business?" Barked one of the masked individuals. "What are you doing here? You're these stupid Ghosts' trainer, aren't you?"

Gengar's grin turned into a frown, while Mismagius simply raised his head, as if to say those insults were so dumb that they didn't even merit getting angry about. The mysterious girl, meanwhile, tossed her Pokeball in the air and caught it on the way down, with absolute nonchalance.

"Stupid Ghosts?" she replied sarcastically. Damien could swear to have seen her smile, even in the darkness. "You better watch what you say, my little friends can be quite touchy. And... you've got some nerve calling me an intruder, considering you were the first to desecrate this place! You were trying to catch the legendary Fire Titan, Moltres, right? "

This point-blank rebuttal caused the three agents to take a step backwards. How did that girl figure things out so quickly? Who was she, really?

"As I thought. And I cannot let the power of the legendary Pokemon be used by the likes of you." She continued. "Therefore, I must kindly ask you to leave this place. Should you refuse... then, I'll just have my Ghost Pokemon be a little more convincing. Gengar, Mismagius... by all means!"

The two spectral Pokemon didn't need to hear that twice, and while the intruders let their own Pokemon out, they clasped their hands together and began creating a pair of spheres of utter darkness in front of themselves...

**oooooooooo**

Pidgeot's flight had lasted several hours, only being interrupted by a brief pause to allow Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn to stretch their legs a little... but finally, by the time the sun was setting behind the horizon, painting the sky a romantic orange tinge, the giant bird had landed, with a skilled yet silent maneuver, on a low hilltop, near a winding road Ash and Pikachu were very familiar with...

"Pidgeot!" the giant pigeon exclaimed, crouching on the ground and motioning for the group to get down, which Ash and his friends quickly did. The boy walked to his one-time Pokemon, patting him on the head to thank him for a job well done.

"Thank you, Pidgeot, you've really been a great help!" he said. "I promise that you won't have to wait so long next time for me to show up... so, as soon as we've solved the problem we came her for, we'll meet again! Okay?"

"Pidgeot, Pidgeot ..." replied the majestic winged Pokemon, watching Ash and his friends with pride. The solemn moment lasted for a few seconds, before Pikachu's shrill voice called everyone to get back on the road...

"Pika pi!" the electric rodent squeaked, stopping a few meters away from the team. Pikachu was standing up, enthusiastically pointing to the horizon, his ears upright and his cheeks crackling! Ash and Brock, knowing what the electric Pokemon wanted to say, beckoned to Dawn and Pidgeot to keepthe pace and began running towards the point where Pikachu was...

"_Pidgeot!_" esclamo' il piccione gigante, acquattandosi sul terreno e facendo cenno al gruppo di scendere, cosa che Ash e i suoi compagni fecero in due secondi. Il ragazzo si avvicino' al suo vecchio Pokemon, facendogli una carezza sulla testa per ringraziarlo dell'aiuto.

"Grazie mille, Pidgeot, ci hai veramente dato una mano!" affermo'. "Ti prometto che la prossima volta non mi faro' aspettare cosi' tanto... non appena avro' risolto il problema per cui sono tornato qui, verro' a trovarti di nuovo! Va bene?"

"_Pidgeot, pidgeot..._" rispose il maestoso Pokemon alato, guardando con fierezza Ash e i suoi amici. Il momento solenne duro' per qualche secondo, prima che la vocetta acuta di Pikachu richiamasse tutti...

"_Pika pi!_" squitti' il roditore elettrico, fermo a poche decine di metri dal gruppo. Pikachu si era messo in piedi e stava indicando un punto all'orizzonte, entusiasta, con tanto di orecchie dritte e guance crepitanti! Ash e Brock, ben sapendo cosa voleva dire il Pokemon elettrico, fecero cenno a Lucinda e Pidgeot di restare al passo e cominciarono a correre verso il punto in cui Pikachu si trovava...

And when the trio of Pokemon trainers and the Flying Pokemon reached the top of the hill, they were rewarded with a view that, although not as stunning as some of the things they saw during their trip, was still very significant to them: the small town had changed enough since Ash had left for the last time, and now had a more modern, and more comfortable look... But there still was no mistaking it!

"Ash... that's..." Dawn asked with great anticipation. She already had a hunch about the answer.

Ash picked up Pikachu and, his eyes filled with nostalgia, took a first tentative step towards the town. "It is, Dawn. That's Pallet Town... the city where I was born!"

Finally, after months on the road, Ash and Pikachu were back home...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Finally, our friends are back in Pallet Town, where it all started! I apologize for the rather dark Candice interlude, but in this case, I felt that it was necessary, in order for the scenery to be set and for a little foreshadowing of events to come. While I'm not exactly the biggest Zoey fangirl in the world, I admit I always liked the idea of making her, Candice and Maylene into some sort of Lovely Angels trio... though, I'll let you be the judge of whether the idea works or not!**

**Stay tuned for next chapter, which will feature a treat for all my fellow Pokeshippers! See you soon, and please review!**


	11. Home Sweet Home

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back! First of all, let me apologize for the way the latest chapter turned out, what with the random Italian popping up towards the end - you see, I am translating this fanfiction after having written it in Italian, and a part which I had not translated in the original document had eluded me. Thanks to everyone who pointed this out, and I'll try and make sure this doesn't happen again. Meanwhile, I've corrected the chapter, and it should be alright now.**

**I apologize for the lateness again, and hope you will enjoy reading the new chapter as much as I did writing it! **

**Chapter 11 - Home Sweet Home**

'Yes, Dawn... we're back! This is my hometown, Pallet Town!"

"Pikachu..." said the electric mouse, with a solemn nod. He, too, was experiencing a flood of memories, especially of their first faltering steps on the road to become a Pokemon Master...

"Pallet Town..." Dawn said to herself. The blue-haired girl was still lagging a little behind the rest of the group, but even from her position, the cozy little town surrounded by the soft light of the sunset was still visible, giving everyone a feeling of coming back home...

"Pidgeot ..." the giant pigeon cooed in agreement... although, just like them, even he could not help but notice that Pallet Town had changed quite a lot with time. It still looked like your run-of-the-mill country village, but it was clear, even from the top of the hill they were standing on, that the city had been expanded and upgraded quite a bit: a few two or three stories houses were visible, with extensive gardens surrounding them. Somewhat further in, Ash and his friends recognized the unmistakable form of a Pokemon Center that had certainly been built not long time ago, and to the side of that, there was a marked area that would probably have been used to build a Pokemon Mart or something along those lines. Professor Oak's lab, in turn, seemed a little more modern, with a dome-shaped roof from which a telescope protruded, and several antennas and strange instruments, whose purpose Ash could only guess at. However, the small city still had its warm and friendly atmosphere, and Ash felt a few tears of emotion as he watched the place where he was born...

Finally, Pikachu and the three trainers decided it was time to move before the sun went down completely... and Brock cleared his voice, recalling the group back to reality. "Um ... okay, guys, now I think we would do well to reach the city before nightfall. What do you say?"

"You're right, Brock! It's true that Kanto is somewhat warmer than Sinnoh, but I don't really like the idea of sleeping in the cold tonight! Hehehee ..." Dawn joked. Ash nodded, then turned to Pidgeot...

"Right then, Pidgeot, what do you want to do?" asked the young Sinnoh League champion. "Remember that if you want to come back in my team, I'm always ready to welcome you! In fact, I think it's the least I can do to apologize!"

The giant pigeon seemed to smile for a moment, but shook his head, politely refusing the offer. "Pidgeot..." he murmured, pointing his beak to the woods they had left behind. Ash understood and nodded, patting Pidgeot's mane of feathers.

'Yes, I understand... you want to stay with those other Pidgey and Pidgeotto with which you've been living all this time... " the boy said. "Well, I respect your choice! And remember that in any case, if for some reason you change your mind, I'm always ready to welcome you back! I promise to come see you soon... and this time, I intend to fulfill it! "

This light-hearted joke elicited a giggle out of Pikachu, Brock and Dawn... even Pidgeot shrugged his shoulders and let out what, in Pokemon language, could very well be the equivalent of a laugh! Then, his eyes watering up a little, he turned to his ex-trainer, accepting his new promise.

"Pidgeot! Pi Pidgeot, Pidgeot!" he cooed as he extended one of its magnificent wings to Ash. The young boy grabbed the tip of the wing, like a handshake... and soon after, with a final squeal that sounded like a wish of good luck, Pidgeot took flight and soared to the orange-tinted sky.

"Goodbye, Pidgeot! Have a safe journey!" Brock exclaimed as they all waved to the departing Pidgeot.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu called to his old friend one last time as he flew away, and the rest of the group watched Pidgeot as he flew towards the horizon, until he became nothing more than a pinpoint in the orange background. Finally, the yellow mouse sighed and motioned to his friends and fellow travelers to head together towards Pallet Town.

Ash felt his heart speed up, while he and his companions approached their goal... finally, their long journey was over! Finally, he could hug his mom and his friends in Kanto!

**oooooooooo**

In another part of Kanto, near the checkpoint located on the road leading to Mount Silver, two Pokemon League agents seemed to be relaxing, reveling in the boredom that their job entailed. It was their turn to guard that checkpoint, after all, and for all that week, their duty had been to check the trainers who passed along that road, making sure they had all the necessary medals to enter what was considered the most dangerous place in the continent. For obvious reasons, they hadn't seen anybody for the longest time. Most trainers were too afraid of that place to even approach it, and even among those who had actually come, only a few had been admitted entrance.

Logically, the result was that standing guard at that checkpoint was not exactly the most exciting work in this world... as one of the guardians pointed out to the other.

"Ugh... it sure isn't pleasant to be stuck here... now I understand why our colleagues are always praying not to get stationed her for the week!" he complained. "I mean, nothing exciting ever happens! I guess it's understandable, considering that nobody in their right mind would go to Mount Silver without some pretty strong Pokemon, and they need the badges of at least two Leagues to enter anyway... but it would be nice if anything happen, y'know?"

"I hear you, man... but rules are rules!" the other guard said as he stretched. "On the bright side, at least nothing dangerous happens here as well... and anyway, in a week we will be assigned to another checkpoint."

"Yeah, guess we just have to be patient and... hey, wait a minute! It seems to me that someone is coming!" said the first guard, pointing to a point in the distance on the dusty road. His colleague, suddenly intrigued, took out a pair of binoculars and looked in that direction... where a boy in his early teens, with longish purple hair and a grim expression on his face, was approaching, holding his hands in his pockets and carrying on his shoulders a very heavy-looking backpack. Immediately, the guards sprung to attention, somewhat relieved that someone had come to relieve their boredom.

A few minutes later, Paul arrived in front of the checkpoint... and the two agents motioned for him to stop. "Wait!" one of them exclaimed. "This is the road leading to Mount Silver, and only the strongest trainers can pass. Show how many badges you've got."

Paul did not change expression, and pulled a small, black badge case out of his pocket. "Here. Check them." he said coldly, giving the case to the two guards, who opened and looked inside it. To their surprise, they counted a total of 32 badges... all the badges of the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh leagues, except one who did not match the 8th Sinnoh badge, but was still legal!

"Wow... it sure was a long time ever since such a strong trainer had passed through here!" the second guard said, quickly checking the badges to see if they were the genuine article. "Okay... I guess we have no reason to dismiss you, boy. You can pass, but be very careful."

Paul nodded without saying a word as he was handed his badge case back and walked past the guard post, coldly determined to get to a Pokemon Center before nightfall. Good. One obstacle was overcome. The really hard part came next, but Paul was not one to be daunted by a difficult task. His goal was clear, and he was going to get the best out of himself and his Pokemon!

And maybe catch some more wild Pokemon while he was at it. Always a good idea to keep a varied team...

**oooooooooo**

As the old saying goes ... There is no place like home!

The smll town was in quite an uproar after seeing Ash, Pikachu and their friends coming back, and many people were out on the road, cogratulating the boy and his Pokemon, and welcoming his traveling companions! They seemed to be especially glad to welcome Dawn, both because she was a foreigner and because she was a Grand Festival finalist!

"We saw you on TV, kiddo!"

"You were great!"

"You have done our town proud!"

"Hey, you two! You are his friends, right? Welcome to Pallet Town!"

"Congratulations on your victory, little girl... and welcome to Pallet Town!"

"Wow..." Dawn murmured, surprised by the tide of people looking out of their windows or leaving the house to congratulate Ash. "I never imagined that people in Kanto were so friendly... but that means I will enjoy my stay, or at least I hope!"

"Yes, the hospitality of the Kanto region is quite well known around the world..." Brock said. "Good evening... Er... thanks! Okay then, Ash... where to go for your home?"

"Hehehee... don't worry, Brock, I may have been away for a long time, but I remember where I live!" the young champion laughed. "So... a little down this road and then left at the fork... I remember it like it was yesterday when I walked this route in the opposite direction!"

"It... was your first day as a trainer, right?" Dawn asked, still in the mood to listen to his friend who spoke of his past. The applause and compliments had died down a little, but still continued to accompany them like some sort of background music.

Pikachu answered instead of his coach, crossing his arms in front of himself with a smug grin! "Pikapi pika chu!" he squeaked. He too remembered very well how he was not at all enthusiastic to be Ash's starter at the beginning of the adventure!

"Um... thank you, Pikachu, but maybe I should be the one telling Dawn how it went!" Ash laughed, somewhat embarrassed by the fact that his Pokemon just remember so well his first not-so-glorious day. "You see, Dawn, I and Pikachu really did not get along, on the first day... I even had to have him on a leash and try to catch my first Pokemon on my own, because Pikachu refused to listen to me! I ended up trying to catch a Pokemon by throwing a stone at him... and the result was, I got a flock of Spearows angry at us both! Now that I think of it, this was also how I met Misty..."

"So it's true... every cloud has a silver lining!" Dawn laughed. "Well... I'd say we've arrived! The lady watching you from the door of that house... she must be your mom, right?"

Ash raised his head in surprise... and his face beamed up with a large smile as he saw his mother and her faithful Mr. Mime standing near the door, welcoming him back! The young boy felt a rush of joy, and tears of happiness spring to his eyes as he saw his mom and their housekeeping Pokemon... and without further ado, Ash and Pikachu broke away from Dawn and Brock, and rushed to Delia and Mimy!

"Mom!" he exclaimed, throwing himself in Mrs. Ketchum's embrace!

"Ash, honey!" said Mrs. Ketchum, holding back a few tears of joy. "Welcome home, Ash ... I'm so happy to see you come back after all this time!"

"Heheheee... me too, Mom... me too!" Ash said as Pikachu stood up on his shoulder and waved to Mrs. Ketchum, raising an arm and emitting a few harmless sparks from his red round cheeks!

"Hey, Pikachu! I see you're doing very well ..." said the young mother, using one hand to caress the electric mouse between his long ears. Pikachu accepted the affectionate gesture with a satisfied squeak. "And I see that you took good care of Ash too, so... thanks for everything, Pikachu!"

"Pika!" said the electric Pokemon, flexing a bicep like a bodybuilder! Ash and his mom giggled, amused by the funny poses Pikachu was striking... then turned to Brock and Dawn, who were approaching slowly, backpacks on their shoulders and hands raised in greeting.

"Mrs. Ketchum... it's a pleasure for me to see you again after so long." Brock said politely.

Dawn, a little uncertainly, approached and bowed gracefully, clasping her hands together. "You are... Mrs. Delia Ketchum... Ash's mom, right?" asked the blue-haired girl. "I'm honored to meet you, ma'am! My name is Dawn, and I'm a Pokemon coordinator from Sinnoh. Ash and I have traveled together for all these months!"

Delia looked at Brock and Dawn, clearly happy to see them. "Oh, Brock... it is a pleasure for me to see you again as well... and this lovely young lady we have here? Your name is Dawn, right? And you come from Sinnoh?"

"Yes, Mrs. Ketchum!" she said, finally getting her hat in position. "I'm a Pokemon Coordinator, to be exact... I, Brock and your son have traveled together throughout Sinnoh, and it was a great experience! Now... well, let's just say I wanted to see Kanto, and the Pokemon who live here! I hope I'm not bothering you or anything..."

"Not at all, dear ..." Delia said. "In fact, if you want to spend the night here, you're welcome to stay! We always have some space for guests!"

Dawn was a little embarassed at that. "Well, Mrs. Ketchum, I don't want to be a bother to you! I'm okay with sleeping in the new Pokemon Center!"

But Mrs. Ketchum was not going to let the newcomer out and cold. "And forcing you to sleep on the cold hard floor, when you could get a nice warm bed? No way, Dawn dear! Ash's friends are my friends too, and there is always room for a guest! Furthermore, Ash... there is someone here who can't wait to see you! So... don't just stay there, guys! Come in, there's a nice surprise waiting for you!"

A little puzzled, Pikachu cocked his head to one side. "Pika?" he asked.

"... A surprise?" Ash asked, equally confused. "And... what is it? Is it... someone we know?"

Delia winked. "Hehee... now, now, Ash, my boy, if I were to tell you, that wouldn't be much of a surprise, now would it? Why don't you come in and see with your own eyes?"

"Mr. Mime!" Mimy exclaimed, politely gesturing for the trio of friends to come in. A little confused, and curious to see what that was all about, Ash and hi friends walked inside...

"Well... truth be told, home looks the same as always to me..." Ash began. The lights were all switched off, and the living room was wrapped in darkness. He was about to say more, when Delia smiled slyly and hit a switch on the wall...

And Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn got the surprise of their lives, as the electric lights revealed a table filled with all kinds of snacks and beverages, over which a colourful 'WELCOME HOME' sign was clearly visible... and standing in front of the table were a few old faces from Pallet Town - namely, professor Samuel Oak, his nephew Gary, and Tracy, joined by his aging Scyther... all of whom were dressed in their usual attires and applauding warmly to the newcomers!

"P-Professor Oak... Gary... Tracey... you're all here, guys!" the young champion exclaimed, as flabbergasted as Brock and Dawn. "You... you were here already? All waiting for me?"

"Yeah! Long time no see, huh, Ash?" Tracy kindly asked, as he and his Scyther came forward first, a jovial smile on the artist's face. "Glad too have you back, guys! I see you're doing well!"

"Scyther_!_" the old mantis Pokemon greeted, crossing his blades in front of himself and bowing respectfully.

"Thank you, Tracy! You seem to be doing nice, too!" Ash said, shaking hands with the Pokemon artist before turning to Professor Oak and Gary.

"Welcome home, Ash, my boy! Yes, we kinda though you would be here soon, and we set things up to greet you and your friends properly" Professor Oak welcomed him after a quick round of applause. "We have watched the Sinnoh finals here in Pallet Town, and I have to say, it was an impressive match! You and your Pokemon have come a long way, and have learned a lot of things!"

Gary gave his old friend and rival a thumbs up. "Yeah... I have to admit that you're far ahead of me! And here at first I thought I was the better trainer!" he said with a sly grin. Ash frowned jokingly as Delia, Brock and Dawn chuckled to themselves. "Anyway... congratulations, man! You did great, and I mean it!"

"Well... thank you very much, Gary! And I'm glad to see you as well!" Ash said. "So... er... how are things at the lab now? I guess you're well on your way to become a researcher."

"Yeah, guess so." Gary said, after exchanging an understanding look with his grandfather. "It's a lot more interesting and fun than I first thought. As of now... we are researching some weird phenomena... but now is not the time for talking about this, is it? We have to celebrate your return!"

"Right... about that, Ash, there's someone else here who wants to greet you back!" Delia went on, smiling seraphically. "Let's see if you can recognize... her! Oops, guess I already said too much, didn't I? Hehehee..."

Ash and Dawn looked bewildered at that, while Brock smiled knowingly to himself... and one second later, a female figure popped out from behind Prof. Oak - a familiar girl who had Pikachu raise his ears in surprise!

"Pika pi! Pika... pika..." Pikachu murmured, pointing at the newcomer - a girl no more than one year older than Ash, dressed in a yellow top and shorts, with red sneakers and, perhaps, most notable of all, bright red hairtied in a ponytail at the side of her head, and bright green eyes looking at Ash with joy, excitement, pride... a mixture of feelings that time had not dampened at all!

"Welcome back, Ash!" Misty said, takking a few steps towards the stunned young boy. "It's been a long time."

"Wh-wh-wh... y... you..." Ash stammered, too stunned for articulated speech. His face was taking on a wide range of colours in quick succession, to the amusement of the more level-headed Brock and to Dawn's surprise, as the blue-haired coordinator had no idea who that girl was and why Ash was acting like this in front of her...

The answer came a second later.

"Mi... Misty?" Ash mouthed. "Is... is that... really you? What... what... when did you...?"

Misty chuckled briefly. Just like Ash to behave that way... time had passed, but in some ways, he remained the naive little kid he was back then! "Hehee... well, when a friend of mine returns from a journey abroad, after taking part and winning a major tournament, the least I can do is come and greet him properly! I called Mrs. Ketchum a few days ago, after hearing of your victory..." Misty said, deliberately omitting the fact that her sisters had pushed her to it. "And she told that you'd probably be back one of these days! So... here I am! Hope you're glad to see me!"

"Er... well, of course! Of course I'm glad! Indeed, while we were on our way here, I was wondering how you were doing!" Ash replied with some embarassment. Misty reappearing in front of him so suddently had weirded him out somewhat.

His travelling companions stepped forward, with Brock bowing a little to greet Misty. "I'm very pleased to meet you again, Misty!" he said. "I was just wondering how you were doing in Cerulean City..."

"Thanks, Brock! The pleasure's all mine!" the redhead answered, before turning her attention to the blue-haired girl who was with him and Ash. She had never seen her before, and she was curious to know a little more about her. "Er... and you myst be a newcomer in the team, right? I don't think I've ever seen you..."

Dawn came forward to introduce herself. "Indeed... my name's Dawn, I'm eleven years old, and I'm a Pokemon coordinator from Sinnoh. I've been travelling with Ash and Brock ever since their journey in Sinnoh started! They taught me a lot of things... and I was able to win a few competitions all thanks to them! Now... let's say I'm here in Kanto to study a little more, and I was also curious to see the place where Ash comes from!"

"I see, then... pleased to meet you as well!" Misty said as the two girls shook hands. "I'm sure we'll get along real well!"

It was a very exciting moment for the group of friends. After so many eventful days, after living their own lives apart from each other, the old team had regrouped and was almost complete. Only May, Max and Drew were missing, Ash thought to himself. But still, this was a moment to celebrate!

"Well, guys... I can see you're all very happy, and you want to celebrate this event!" Delia said, pointing to the table filled with food. "So why waste time? We have all night to celebrate, therefore... c'mon, dig in!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed, leapt down from Ash's shoulder and almost literally flew to the dinner table, taking a ketchup-covered pretzel and beginning to eat it with gusto! Ash and Misty couldn't help but chuckle at the scene...

"Heheheee... time passes, but some habits remain always the same!" said Misty.

"Well, then... let's just kick back and enjoy our meal!" Tracy proposed. "Tonight, we celebrate the homecoming of Ash Ketchum, champion of the Sinnoh League and future Pokemon Master!"

**oooooooooo**

"Aaaah! After we traveled all day, I really needed a break!" Dawn sighed in content as she flopped down on a sofa.

The party in Ash's home had lasted well until the little hours of the night, and nothing much was left on the living room table apart from a few breadcrumbs here and there, and some stained paper handkerchieves. All the ones who had taken part in the party were just now exchanging the proper greetings and farewells, before turning in for the night.

"So, Professor... Gary, Tracy... see you tomorrow! There are many tings I'd like to tell you about Hoenn and Sinnoh..." Ash was saying at the moment. "And I can't wait to see my Pokemon and hear what you have to tell me as well!"

The old Pokemon expert laughed fullheartedly. "Hahahaaa! You're right, Ash, my boy, several things happened here in Pallet while you were away, and it will take some time for me to tell you all!" he answered, before clearing his throat and getting more serious. "About that... In fact there is something I'd like to talk to you about, and it concerns those strange happenings I spoke to your Mom. Of course, if you are still willing to, I'd never force you or anything."

Ash looked thoughtful at that. In fact, his mother had hinted at problems, but she hadn't been very precise about it. "Well... I have no problem with that at all!" he said, bbefore looking to Brock, Misty and Dawn, who all answered with a nod. "Exactly, what is this about?"

"We're not sure about that..." Gary answered in turn. ""But it seems that recently, some strange happenings have been going on in the Sevii Islands, an archipelago near the equator, south of Kanto. And the Pokemon in that area are behaving a little strangely... it all seems linked to some activities conducted by some unknown individals inside Mt. Ember, an active volcano located on Knot Island, the closest to Kanto of all the islands."

"Yeah, I heard about it as well..." Tracy went on. "And this was not the only strange happening... a lot of strong storms have been brewing up in the oceans between Hoenn and sinnoh... and while the news are still fragmentary at best, it seems that an avalanche has hit Snowpoint City, in the northern region of Sinnoh."

Dawn's eyes flew open in fear, and her heart missed a beat. "Wh... What?" she murmured. "Snowpoint City? We've been there, a friend of mine lives there! What... what happened there? Are there any victims?"

The same alarmed expression was on the faces of Ash, Brock and Pikachu, and Prof. Oak tried to reassure them. "Well, we don't know much yet, but it seems that, luckily, the damage was limited. Dawn, if you want, tomorrow we can try to call the Snowpoint City Gym, and check things out..."

"That would be a good idea." Brock said with a nod. "In fact, we're on good terms with the Gym Leader Candice, an Ice Pokemon user. She's a friendly person, and one who'll be more than willing to help us out."

"Among other things, she's my friend Zoey's sempai..." Dawn added, more calm but still visibly nervous. "So... well, it's only natural that I'm worried about her. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her."

Pikachu rubbed his chin for a second, then raised his ears. "Pikaka! Pichu Pichu Pika ... pika pika pikachu?"

"Uh ... actually, Pikachu is making sense..." Ash said. "As the ferries from Hoenn to Sinnoh are suspended, this means that Zoey probably did not to Hoenn as her intention was!"

"'True... " Dawn said. "I wonder where she is now..."

"I see... well, Pikachu... what do you think? Are you willing to start a new journey?" Ash asked his first Pokemon. The yellow mouse flexed a bicep, squealing his name as loud as he could.

"Truth be told, I would like to come as well." Brock said, joining the volunteers.

"Yeah, me too!" Dawn said. "I can go see Kanto later on... and in the meanwhile, I can take a trip to the Sevii Islands! And if can lend a hand to Ash and his friends, well..."

"If you think I'm gonna be sidelined here, you really don't know me at all!" Misty chuckled. "I'm on it as well! Besides, it could be a very important matter, right? So... count me in! And don't worry, Dawn, I'm sure nothing happened to your friend!"

Dawn smiled in relief. She had only known Misty for a few hours, but she still felt that the two were becoming fast friends. "Thanks, Misty! Glad to hear you say that!"

"Well, guys... seeing as you're all so willing to help out, I am all too glad to accept!" Prof. Oak said kindly. "If you all agree on that, we can meet in my lab tomorrow, in the afternoon, to discuss details. After that, you can start your journey to Sevii Islands... they're really a nice place to be, and I'm sure you'll like them a lot! Although they're getting to be somewhat dangerous lately..."

"Yeah, I can imagine that..." Ash answered. "However... it's not like it's the first time we do something dangerous, right? Heheheee..."

Gary rolled his eyes slightly. "Yeah, right... so, Ashy-boy, see you tomorrow... and try to be well-rested, it won't be an easy journey!" he concluded, running a hand through his messy marroon hair.

"Okay, Ash, see you tomorrow... and good night!" Tracy finally said, and the two groups waved at each other for a while, as Prof. Oak, his grandson and his assistant walked back to the lab.

"Alright... that's settled, then!" Delia commented with a sigh. "Misty, Dawn... I've already prepared a room for you two! Ash and Brock can sleep in Ash's room, there's enough space for another bed!"

"We appreciate that, Mrs. Ketchum..." Brock answered. "But at least let us help you with tidying the house and doing the dishes, it's the very least we can do to thank you for your kindness!"

"I agree, I'm on it too!" Dawn answered, lightly slapping herself on the cheeks to ward off fatigue.

"Me too, Mrs. Ketchum! Leave the work to us!" Misty went on.

Ash chuckled to himself. Housework was definitely not his forte, but he could live with that for once, couldn't he? "Well, it just wouldn't be right if I bailed out on this, right? So, I'm giving you a hand in this as well!"

"Thanks, guys, that's really kind of you..." Delia said, relieved at not having to do all that work by herself. "So, let's see... we can begin by taking out the trays..."

**oooooooooo**

It took almost one hour to get everything done, and in the end, Ash was all too glad to change into his pyjamas and flop down on his bed, with Pikachu curled at his feet like a lazy cat! Brock had also put his night shirt and pants on, and was sitting on the bed Mrs. Ketchum had set up for him.

"Well, nothing's better than a nice soft bed to relax on after sch an eventful day!" the dark-skinned boy commented. The two friends were now lying on their backs, taking advantage of those few moments to exchange a few words before going to sleep. "And I must say, I kinda missed it, after all these night out in the open!"

"You said it, man!" Ash replied. "By the way, Brock... do you know something more on these Sevii Islands? You're always the more informed of us all..."

"Hmm... Sevii Islands, huh?" Brock said as he tried to think of what he knew of the place. "I did read a few things about them, but it was quite a long time ago... anyway, yes, I remember a rumour about Mt. Ember, the volcano on the northern island, being the new lair of one of Kanto's Legendary Birds, Moltres, the Fire Titan... I guess that must be somehow tied with the recent happenings."

"I see..." Ash said, then tried to move the conversation to less vexing topics. "Anyway, I'm really happy Misty joined us again, I have to say! I've been thinking of her more and more, lately..."

Brock smiled cunningly to himself. "Well... yes, you're right! Truth be told, there was something missing in our team, without her to stir things around! It will be nice to travel with her, just like the old times!"

"I think so as well!" Ash said. "Still, I guess it's time for us to go to sleep! See you tomorrow, Brock!"

"Of course!" the older boy answered. "Good night, and don't worry! We'll get to the bottom of this mystery!"

"Thanks, Brock... and good night to you too, Pikachu!"

"Pika pika, pikapi!" the yellow mouse winked at his trainer before getting to sleep as well...

**oooooooooo**

"So... you were Ash's first travelling companion! Hehehee... he sure seems to have a thing for destroying girls' bicycles!" Dawn was saying, enthralled by Misty's retelling of how she and Ash first met. The two girls were lying on their respective beds, in the Ketchum house's guest room, and had spent their time telling each other stories about their trip.

"Hehehee... yeah, must be a problem of his! He can't meet a new girl without destroying her bike first!" Misty laughed. "But never mind these tiny details! Rather, I'm curious to know... what kind of Pokemon do you prefer to use?"

"Well, I like to use different types to mix things up..." the blue-haired girl replied. "But there is a Pokemon I like to use above all others... that's my Piplup, the Pokemon I began my journey with!"

"Piplup? That's a Water-type Pokemon, right?" Misty asked, already eager to know more. "Well... if you don't mind, could you show him to me tomorrow? I really love Water-type Pokemon, especially my Starmie! Luckily my sisters allowed me to take her with me, when I left the Gym..."

"I see..." Dawn said. "Well, I'd really love to hear more stories, Misty, but I'm afraid it's a little late now..."

"You're right..." Misty said, looking at the clock beside her bed. "It's two o'clock already, and we all need a little rest, so... okay, Dawn, see you tomorrow! Good night!"

"Goodnight, Misty!" Dawn concluded as she lay down on her bed and closed her eyes, excited at what was to come, but still unable to silence that voice in her head, still worrying about what had happened to Snowpoint City... she sighed as she closed her eyes and tried to sleep. There was not much she, or anyone else, could do at the moment. Tomorrow morning, hopefully, they'd be able to contact the Snowpoint Gym and see what had happened...

Hopefully, they'd get good news... or at least, discover that nobody was harmed...

**oooooooooo**

Meanwhile, in a small clearing a short distance away from Pallet, Meowth was carefully looking around the place he, Jessie and James had camped in for the night. After seeing, thanks to his cat-like vision, that there was nothing threatening around, the feline Pokemon stretched lazily and went back to his travelling companions, who were sitting around a small campfire. Jessie tossed a few dry twigs into the fire to rekindle it, then turned to Meowth to see if everything was OK...

"All quiet around here!" the cat Pokemon answered as he sa down by the fire, enjoying a little heat. "A few wild Pokemon, but nothing serious... and no trace of the twerps since they arrived in town! They don't seem to know we managed to follow them."

Jessie grinned in satisfaction. "That's good to know. this means we can attack them when they least expect it! In a few days, we'll be delivering Pikachu to the boss, and we'll get our reward!" she said, convinced that the electric mouse was going to fall in their hands soon. She turned to James, expecting her less graceful companion to share her excitement...

And was a little surprised when she saw that James was staring up to the starry sky, looking unusually pensive, as if he was reflecting on something very important. Such behaviour mystified Jessie... it was not like James to act like that. She was used to him being his usual bumbling self...

"James? He, James, you hear me?" Jessie said, waving a hand in front of his face. "James, when you're done dreaming with your eyes open, you might want to come back down to Earth and listen to what we have to say!"

"I was thinking, Jessie..." James answered, without paying too much attention to his companion's annoyed tone. "Don't you feel like going back in time?"

Jessie blinked in confusion. What was James trying to say, and what did that have to do with the situation at hand?

"I mean..." the blue-haired boy quickly corrected himself. "When we met the twerps for the first time, it was around here... near Viridian City, back when we still had Ekans and Koffing, remember?"

"Um... sure..." Jessie said, hiding her nostalgia at the mention of their first Pokemon. "And... now we're back here where everything started, and still trying to capture Pikachu and get the better of the twerps... that's what you meant, right?"

James smiled and laughed a little in embarassment. "Er... well, yes, more or less that's what I meant!" he said. "I know, I know, it wasn't the smartest thing I could say, at a time like this..."

But surprisingly enough, Jessie did not seem annoyed... rather, she and Meowth seemed to be quite impressed with James' comments. "Hmmm... you know what, James? That's actually quite deep. coming from you of all people..." the cat Pokemon said.

"I admit I feel a little nostalgic myself..." Jessie said, losing herself a little in her memories. "Sigh... those were the times when we, as Team Rocket, were terrifying and dangerous! Now, it seems to me we've been relegated as this show's comedic interlude... stupid writers..."

"Well, this will change soon!" Meowth decided, smacking his palm with the opposite fist. "Next time, we'll get the job done, and rebuild our reputation! This will be our rebirth! And... thanks for rminding us of our best times, James! That was just the encouragement we needed!"

"Let it never be said you're useless, James!" Jessie said triumphantly, patting the boy on his shoulder. For his part, James smiled nervously - that wasn't exactly what he had in mind...

Oh well, it still managed to motivate Jessie and Meowth well enough. He could live with that, for now...

**oooooooooo**

The Pokemon Center on the road to Mount Silver was almost completely empty, now that the night had fallen and Nurse Joy was about to do her last checks and go to sleep. She had to admit that was not the best place to manage a Pokemon Center. Very few people stopped there... obviously, as only the most experienced and skilled trainers dared to face Mt. Silver and its perils, and deal with the mighty Pokemon that lived in its valleys and caves. As a consequence, there were never many people to exchange words with, and sometimes her job got a bit boring. Although, as all the other Joys, she still liked to take care of Pokemon and put them back on their feet...

At that moment, the only people there besides her were two young trainers who were sleeping wrapped in their sleeping bags in a corner of the main hall. Joy once again checked that nothing was wrong... and just when she was almost finished, the sound of an opening door almost made her jump in surprise. Raising her eyes quickly, the pink haired nurse saw that it was a teenage boy, no more than fourteen years old, with longish purple hair and a cynical, almost grim, expression on his face. Surprised by the late visit, but still determined to do her job, the nurse bowed to the boy, who came in with barely a nod of recognition.

"Good evening, and welcome to the Pokemon center!" Joy welcomed him. "I guess you're here to spend the night and rest your Pokemon, right?"

Paul nodded, without changing expression. "Exactly. Tomorrow morning we get to Mount Silver, and my Pokemon have to be in perfect shape." he said. "Will they be ready for tomorrow morning?"

Before Paul's sharp tone, Joy maintained an impeccable politeness. "Of course. If you want to stay here for the night, there's a lot of free space in the living room, and you can put your sleeping bag there." she said, without losing her smile as she took the Sinnoh trainer's Pokeballs one by one. "Only, try not to disturb the others, okay?"

"Hm." Paul responded with a nod, then headed into the main hall without a sound, to start preparing for the night. It was time to rest for him as well. If he had his way, the next days would be very intense for both him and his Pokemon...

**oooooooooo**

TO BE CONTINUED...

**Author's Note: Phew... I really liked writing this chapter! Sure, I ended up concentrating mostly on Ash and his team... and I apologize to Pidgeot fans, but there was no way I could plausibly keep him in the story, at least not for now! He will be back later, though, so don't worry! For now, I needed to make sure the team arrived in Pallet Town and settled down... and above all, they needed to know of the strange events happening worldwide! Later, I will concentrate on Max, May, possibly Drew as well... and on Zoey's little group! For now I just hope Ash's return to his hometown was satisfying!**

**I really liked writing the interactions between Misty and Dawn! I am sure that, if they came to know each other, they would be great friends!**

**That's all for now! I'll be back as soon as possible, as soon as I'm back from my struggle with my own depression. Writing can really do wonders to cheer you up! **


	12. Sevii Islands, Ahoy!

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Welcome back, everybody! I finally managed to update this story, and I trust I'll be able to churn out the next chapter soon enough. This week doesn't seem to be too hectic, so I am sure I will be able to find more time to write!**

**Anyway, this chapter will mostly deal with Ash and his friends getting ready for their journey to the Sevii Islands, and will be a good excuse to see what the enemies are planning, and what teams our heroes are bringing along! Yes, not much to say about this new chapter, really... but I hope it's amusing enough!**

**That said, enjoy!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 12 - Sevii Islands Ahoy!**

"_What? What do you mean you have failed?_"

J's henchmen who had been scouting Mt. Ember had returned empty-handed, save for a rather embarassing recount of how they were ambushed and defeated by a mysterious female trainer nobody had known about until then, and specializing in Ghost-type Pokemon.

Damien was easily the most embarassed about his poor showing, and bowed his head in shame in front of the screen upon which J's immediate superior, eyes almost shining in the darkness, glared mercilessly at them all. The fact that J herself was standing near the screen and regarding the three henchmen with clear displeasure did nothing to ease his fears... the Pokemon hunter seemed to be waiting for him to open his mouth only so she could verbally lash at him.

"Yes... we regret to say as much..." Kanto's ex-trainer affirmed. "We're... terribly sorry bout this, we have done our best... but that girl was just too much for us, and her Ghost Pokemon were at a whole other level than ours! We were totally powerless against them... and we had to retreat!"

J shook her head and bitterly shot down her subordinate's justifications. "Tch... that's all an excuse not to admit your own incompetence." she sentenced. "You're members of one of the most feared criminal cartels in the world... and you were defeated by a mere trainer! Such a failure is simply unacceptable, especially if we think how much is at stake here! Hopefully, I don't need to remind you of that, right?"

"Of... of course not, Miss J, we know what we're dealing with! But still..." another henchman answered. "But still... we were completely powerless against her, and that's a fact! Her Gengar and Mismagius simply walked all over our Pokemon!"

J and her superior did not seem too impressed at the news, but they were still interested in knowing more about this mysterious female trainer. Something was fishy about all of this, and if their guesses were correct, maybe their underlings were right when they said that it was something far beyond their ability to handle.

"Hmmm..." the mysterious leader mused, scratching at his short, spiky goatee. "You said she uses Ghost-type Pokemon, right? Two of which were a Gengar and a Mismagius... have you managed to take a good look at her?"

"Well... sadly, we couldn't, sir... it was too dark for us to see her..." Damien answered. "Still... from what little I could see, she was dressed like somesort of island dweller, with a large flower in her hair... she was short, and her hair were cut short... I don't really remember anything more..."

"Doesn't matter, that's more than enough for me to know who we're dealing with." J answered, her face turned into a frown as she began thinking of the various possibilities. "Sir, we'd better retreat, at least for now. If this... guardian, for lack of a better term... is reallly the person I suspect to be, then we need a better plan to get the better of her."

"Yes, I agree with that as well, Hunter J..." the darkness-cloaked leader answered. "Though, I didn''t think such a person could be involved in all of this. Doesn't matter, anyway... we just need to come up with a better strategy. For a while, we'll be pulling away from Mt. Ember. Then, as she lowers her guard, we'll swoop down again, and this time we'll bring along a few unwelcome surprises for her! Hehehehee..."

The leader ended with a chilling chuckle which sent shivers down Damien's spine, while J remained cold and detached, and simply asked a question to her superior.

"I understand. Then, you are thinking to employ... our secret weapons, am I correct?" she asked. The masked individual answered ith a simple nod, which still conveyed some sort of sadistic pleasure at the idea of employing these methods.

"Exactly, J... my Dark Pokemon should be more than capable to take down even such a powerful trainer!" the mysterious man said. "Very well then, I'll send some Pokemon who can be a match for this unknown girl. But I'm not going to be forgiving of mistakes this time, do I make myself clear? We've reached a critical point, and if we were to fail, it would have been all in vain, and we'd have half the world's police on our heels! Remember, we're Team Vicious, and our fate is to become the absolute rulers and manage where even Team Galactic failed. We are not going to be stopped by these irritants, are we?"

"Of course not, sir! Team Vicious Forever!" one of Damien's companions exclaimed, his fist clenched in front of his heart. Damien and the other minion did the same, though they certainly didn't look as convinced or fanatically zealous.

"Very good, since we're clear on this..." J said. "We have no choice but to temporarily withdraw. Then, we'll be back with a better strategy to face this opponent. Alright, leader, our course is decided then. Damien, give orders to the crew to resume navigation positions. We'll get away from Knot Island, but we'll remain within thirty miles of the coastline. Make sure they lose our tracks."

"Acknowledge, Miss J!" an operator answered. Team Vicious' mysterious leader nodded once before the comm screen went blank, and the enormous vehicle started to hum as its engines started.

"_We'll let this one slide, for now..._" J thought to herself. "_But as soon as we get our new Pokemon from the leader, no outsider will be able to interfere with our project... and keep me away from my reward._"

**oooooooooo**

Pikachu slowly opened one eye, trying not to be blinded by the ray of sunlight filtering from the window in his trainer's room. After waking up completely and shrugging off that night's lethargy, the electric mouse silently jumped off the bed and stratched himself, getting ready for the new day. It was bound to be a very busy day, and he wanted to be in tip-top shape.

"_Pika..._" he whispered to himself, before taking a look at Ash and Brock. Judging from their slow, regular breathing, the two trainers were still in the land of dreams... And since it was almost eight o' clock in the morning, and they both had to get ready for a long journey, maybe it was a good idea to wake them up! With a mischievous grin, the yellow mouse nodded to himself and climbed on Ash's bed as well, finding his trainer still wrapped in the blankets and sleeping like a baby. He got closer to Ash's face, enough so to hear what Ash was murmuring in his sleep...

"_Pika pi..._" Pikachu murmured, trying to wake Ash up... without garnering any success! In fact, all the young trainer did was roll on one side and murmur something to himself.

"Hmm... no, thanks... already ate... enough..." he said, still half-asleep.

Pikachu frowned slightly. Where had the enthusiastic trainer who woke up with the first rays of sun to start a new adventure gone? As soon as Ash could enjoy his home's coziness a little, he immediately grew lax... oh, well, no matter, Pikachu knew other ways to wake him up...

"_Pika pi!_" he repeated, getting closer to his friend's ear. There was a reaction this time, but it wasn't what Pikachu had hoped.

"Hmm..." Ash murmured as he rolled to one side. "Nasty mosquitoes here... please let me sleep..."

Pikachu's right ear twitched in annoyance. Ash was proving to be harder to wake up than usual, but Pikachu didn't give up and decided to be clearer about it. "_PIKA PI!_" he squeaked as he got closer yet...

Once again, the results were disappointing: with an indistinct murmur, Ash retreated under the blankets to drown out the noise.

The electric mouse understood that there were no more alternatives, and that this called for an harsher wake-up call. "_Pikachu..._" he sighed as his cheek sparkled briefly... and then, he let out a Thundershock attack that briefly showed Ash's skeleton like an X-ray scan, making his hair stand on end, and finally waking him up with a brief cry of distress! Pikachu interrupted the shock at once, and Ash fell from the bed like a sack of rice, twitching briefly from the shock... and just then, Brock sat up on his bed, as if nothing happened!

"AAAARGH!" the black-haired young boy screamed. "Who, what, how, where, when... ugh, it was you, Pikachu! Why did you wake me up like that? I had almost forgotten how much your Thundershocks hurt..."

Expecting such complaints, the yellow mouse pointed to the digital clock on Ash's drawer. "_Pikachu..._" he murmured almost indifferently, as his small paw pointed to the screen. With a surprised murmur, Ash turned that way... and saw that it was eight o'clock in the morning already!

"Oh, good day, Ash!" Brock greeted as he woke up. "Looks like your Pikachu is an excellent wake-up call. He was bang on time!"

"Oh, hi, Brock! Sorry, I was a little stunned... all thanks to Pikachu's wake-up call..." Ash answered with a drop of sarcasm, as his pyjamas still smoked a little. The young champion combed his hair back in place and picked himself up, holding Pikachu in his arms. "Still, I have to admit he was right to wake me up that way! Knowing myself, I would probably have slept till midday if he didn't! Heheheee..."

"Guess I have to thank Pikachu as well, then!" the Rock Pokemon expert joked. "Anyway, we'd better get ready! We're going to have a very busy day, and if what Prof. Oak told us is true, we have to move early!"

"Right..." Ash said. "Okay, Pikachu, let's get started! The sooner we get to Cinnabar Island, the better! And personally, I can't wait to see the Sevii Islands!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu enthusiastically agreed.

**oooooooooo**

Ash and Brock quickly got ready and went downstairs, where they were greeted by the rather unexpected sight of Mrs. Ketchum and Misty preparing breakfast - it seemed that Delia was teaching the Water Pokemon expert to cook something, and Misty was following her instructions with great interest.

"And remember, Misty dear, that the oven must not be too hot, or else you don't get the right fragrance, and... Oh, good morning, Ash dear! Good morning, Brock! I guess you've been sleeping well!"

Ash stifled a yawn and waved to his mother and Misty. "Hi, Mom! Good morning! Hello, Misty... imagine seeing you in the kutchen already, I thought I and Brock had been the first ones to wake up!"

"As you can see, my dear Ash Ketchum, us girls wake up earlier than you!" she good-naturedly ribbed him, winking at him. "Have you been slackking off since we last saw each other, by chance? You used to wake up with the first sunrays!"

"Heehee... you know how things are, Misty... my Ash always slacks off a little when he can sleep on a soft bed and with a pillow under his head! Delia added as se took a plate of hot omelettes out of the oven. "Anyway, as you can see... now the omelettes are ready and well done!"

The fragrance of the omelettes completely woke Ash up from his morning torpor, and both he and Pikachu ogled the plate, their nostrils widening in pleasure! "Woooow! Mom, I almost did not remember the smell of your cuisine anymore! These... these omelettes are..." He stopped himself after just a few words, as a strange thought went through his head. Had his eyes been playing tricks on him? His Mom... was actually teaching Misty how to cook? What was going on? "Er... hold on a second, Mom... was it just me, or were you just teaching Misty how to cook your homemade omelettes?"

Misty turned away slightly, wrinkling her nose and her cheeks taking a slight pink hue. Brock chuckled to himself, and Mrs. Ketchum winked, never losing her seraphic composure. "Yes, I was... are you surprised? Before going to bed, yesterday evening, Misty asked me if I could give her a few cooking lessons! Since her sisters are usually the ones to cook, back at home, she doesn't have a lot of experience!" she explained.

"Alright..." Ash answered. "Though I find it strange that she got this idea all of a sudden..."

As the Water Pokemon expert's face took on a hue who looked more and more like her hair's, Delia smiled and waved a finger in the air. "Now, now... a girl's got to have her secrets, doesn't she?" she answered. "And now... oh, Dawn! Good morning, dear... even if you were the last to come down, I see you're ready!"

In fact, the blue-haired girl had just come down from the guest room, already in her everyday clothes. "Good morning, Mrs. Ketchum!" she greeted. "Good morning, everyone! Well... actually, I woke up just a little after Misty, but I wanted to take my time to wash myself and get dressed! I hope I did not bother you..."

"Not at all, we almost didn't hear you!" Delia answered. "And now, boys and girls, I have the honor of presenting you my homemade omelettes! C'mon, everybody, let's have a nice breakfast! You'll need a lot of energy, for the journey you're going to embark to!"

"Actually, I think we'll be departing tomorrow, but still... thank you very much!" Misty answered, as everyone began walking to the kitchen table. However, strangely enough, Ash stood back, and called to Brock with a slight movement of his head.

"Hm? Yeah, tell me, Ash. Is... there any problem?" the Rock Pokemon expert asked.

"No, actually, there are no problems..." Ash answered, rubbing the back of his head in embarassment. "I just needed to ask you... what do you think Mom meant by... well... the secrets a girl needs to have? Do you have any idea?"

Brock sighed patiently, looking like someone who had been through that a lot of times already, and still hadn't gotten tired of it. "Hehehee... well, Ash, let me just tell you one thing: you might be a great Pokemon trainer, but you still have lots to learn when it comes to girls!"

Further confused, Ash blinked and scratched his cheek as he turned to Pikachu... and the yellow mouse, who was already quite used to those scenes, crossed his arms on his chest and nodded in approval! "_Pika pika!_"

The young champion sighed. Just as Misty had said, certain thing do never change...

**oooooooooo**

Later that afternoon, Ash and his friends went to professor Oak's lab, where the famous Pokemon expert was going to give them more information about the problems on the Sevii Islands... and where Dawn could hopefully get in contact with Snowpoint City and discover somethingmore on what had happened there. If nothing else, at least to chase away that horrible bad feeling she had been struggling with since last evening...

This was the first thing Oak had thought about, in fact, and now he, Ash and Dawn were in front of a PC, from where Oak was trying to open a communication channel to Snowpoint City's Pokemon Center, in the hope of finding someone answering on the other side. The blue-haired girl, notoriously a fan of the old researcher, was watching what he was doing in admiration...

"This is really incredible... you can contact anyplace, anytime, with today's technology!" she said in awe. "But... sorry, professor Oak, are you sure we'll find someone to speak with?"

"Well... if the Pokemon Center isn't too damaged, I am sure of it!" the old scientist answered in a soothing tone. "Hehee... one of the perks of being a famous Pokemon researcher is, wherever you call, you always find someone who is willing to speak with you!"

Ash and Dawn chuckled at Oak's wisecrack, before the dialog window that had popped up on Oak's PC started giving signs of having estabilished a link... and Pikachu raised his ears, pointing at a Nurse Joy who had appeared on the screen. "_Pika pi, pika!_"

"Oh, good! Looks like the connection went without a hitch..." Oak affirmed, waiting a few moments for the link to stabilize itself. "Hello? Hello, Snowpoint City Pokemon Center? Do you hear me? Nurse Joy, can you hear me?"

"Professor Oak, what a nice surprise!" the pink-haired nurse answered in relief. "We... we weren't expecting a call from you right now... are you contacting us for what happened recently in Snowpoint City?"

"As a matter of fact... yes, Nurse Joy. Wedon't have all the details yet, here in Kanto, but we do know that there was an unexpected disaster, where you are now..." the professor answered. "I wanted to know more about that... and I sincerely hope there are no victims..."

"Sadly, that actually is the case, professor Oak... three people died because of an avalanche that suddently came down from Mt. Coronet, no more than two days ago..." the nurse answered with an heavy sigh. "And some people's whereabouts are still unknown. Several squads have been dispatched to aid in the search, but I'm afraid we'll need time to have the complete picture..."

"I see... and I'm very sorry about that." Oak answered sadly. "By the way, Nurse Joy... can you tell me anything about the Snowpoint City Gym Leader, Candice, or about a girl named Zoey - the runner-up in this year's Sinnoh Grand Festival? Where are they now?"

Dawn took a deep breath and grit her teeth, hoping for the best...

"Our Gym Leader is safe, as she wasn't here when the avalanche struck. And about Zoey... she's right here!" Joy answered, causing Dawn to sigh in relief! "At the moment, they're both here along with Maylene, another Sinnoh Gym Leader. They only came here a few hours after disaster struck, so there was no way for them to get involved."

"That's a bit of a relief..." professor Oak commented. "By the way... since that Zoey girl is there with you, could you ask her to come talk with Dawn here? We're in my lab, in Pallet Town... and Dawn was quite worried about Zoey and her friends."

"Of course, professor Oak! We'll put you in contact with her right away!" Joy answered as Oak stepped aside, allowing a very relieved Dawn to talk directly to her friend as soon as she was visible on the screen.

"Dawn!" Zoey exclaimed, both surprised and happy. "I wasn't expecting you to call this quickly... I thought you still didn't know about what happened here in Snowpoint City. How are you doing?"

Dawn couldn't hold back a large, bright smile. "I'm glad you're alright, Zoey... when I heard there was an avalanche, I feared something might have happened to you and the girls... they're both alright, aren't they?"

Zoey smiled slightly while nodding. "Yes... luckily I, Candice and Maylene were away when this happened, so we couldn't get caught in it. Still, we were quite shocked by what happened, that's for sure. Especially Candice... there were three victims, nobody we knew, but still people who have sadly lost their lives."

"Yeah, I see..." Dawn answered, looking more subdued. "I... I'm really sorry for what happened, and I'm glad you're alright, at least... As for me, I'm in Pallet Town, the town Ash comes from! I was here in some sort of study vacation, but there seems to be something more serious to think about now. Professor Oak thinks these events aren't natural, but may be connected to something more important and dangerous."

"I understand. We were suspecting something along those lines too, and we'd like to get some answers about this as well. Anyway, Dawn... I wish good luck to you and your friends!"

"Thanks, Zoey! Same to you!" Dawn answered, waving one last time to her best friend before the communication was interrupted. Dawn sighed again, satisfied that at least she had one less thing to worry about. Now, however, it was time to think of the more urgent problem...

"Luckily Zoey and the others are alright..." Ash commented. "Though I'm sorry other people got involved... professor Oak, do you think this avalanche too might be connected with what is happening in the Sevii Islands?"

Oak rubbed at his chin and slowly nodded. "I wouldn't rule that out, Ash... in fact, this might be the case also for the strange phenomena in the oceans between Sinnoh and Hoenn. I have a bad feeling about this, if I have to be honest. I'm afraid that, if this isn't handled as soon as possible, these incidents might evolve in something more serious."

"That won't happen, professor. We'll get to the root of this mystery, and make things right." the young boy answered. "Right, Pikachu?"

"_Pika pika... pichu pi pika pika chu, pika!_" the electric mouse squeaked in self-assurance. It was obvious, though, that he was a little worried as well, and he was suggesting to be prudent.

"Hehehee... no problem, Pikachu, we have lived a lot of adventures together... we'll get through this as well!" the young Pokemon Master aspirant affirmed. "Well, I guess that's all we need to know... now, professor, what's our schedule for our journey to Sevii Islands?"

"I was expecting this question, my boy!" Oak jovially answered. "First off, I thought Gary might be interested in coming with you as well. I already spoke to him about this, and he seemed to be okay with it... actually, his exact words were that he wants to show you how much he's gotten better!"

"I can imagine that..." he exclaimed, his mind going back to their childhood altercations. Dawn, for her part, was quite happy to know that Oak's grandson was going to be part of the expedition as well!

"I guess this little trip will be even more interesting than I thought!" the blue-haired girl commented. "Dunno about you, Ash, but I can't wait for it to start!"

**oooooooooo**

As Ash was examining his Pokemon, in order to decide which ones to bring with him in this journey, Dawn had used the time to show her Pokemon to Misty... and needless to say, Misty had turned into a fawning ditz as soon as Piplup was out of his Pokeball, glomping it and hugging it like a huge plush toy!

"Awwwww! He's sooooo cuuuuute!" Misty exclaimed in pure bliss, as golden stars shone comically around her, and Piplup awkwardly tried to wriggle free of the tight embrace! "I've never seen such a cute Water Pokemon! You are lucky in Sinnoh, having such an adorable Pokemon as a starter!"

"Hehehee... you're reminding me how hard my first day as a trainer was!" the blue-haired girl giggled, gently trying to "rescue" her starter Pokemon from her new friend's overeager attentions. "Still, if it wasn't for the mess I did, I would never have met Ash and Brock, and I wouldn't be where I am now! Heheheee... and what about Kanto? Which starters do you have? I remember that you can choose Squirtle as a Water Pokemon..."

"Exactly... and then there are Charmander for those who prefer a Fire-type starter, and Bulbasaur as a Grass-type." Misty explained as she handed Piplup back to Dawn. "Ash was kind of a special case... since he had woken up late in his first day as a trainer, the labs had run out of starters by the time he was ready, and he had to settle for the last remaining Pokemon... the same Pikachu you've always seen with him! And he had an hard time getting him to listen as well!"

"I guess so..." Dawn answered with a brief laugh. "And... what about you, Misty? Which Pokemon have you brought with you?"

Misty reached into her backpack for the Pokeballs. "Well... first things first, I have my favourite Pokemon, Starmie, with me! And then there are my Gyarados, my Azurill, my Horsea... huh? What... what's this?"

Dawn frowned a little at Misty's sudden confusion. "Er... you alright, Misty? Is anything wrong?"

"Not at all, Dawn..." the redheaded Cerulean Gym Leader answered. "It's just that, well, I thought I had only put four Pokeballs in my backpack, and here are five of them, instead! What's this one doing here?"  
Her question was quickly answered, and it wasn't an answer Misty liked. The Pokeball in excess snapped open in a brief light show, and the Pokemon inside of it took form in front of Dawn's surprised eyes: a very goofy-looking Pokemon, with the appearence of a yellow duck with a short tail, a tuft of feathers on top of his head, a flat and overlarge beak... and a trademark vacant look in his eyes, his head constantly held in his hands as if he suffered from continuous headaches!

"_Psy-ay-ay..._" Psyduck quacked obliviously. Piplup and Dawn looked at him in surprise.

"Erm..." Dawn murmured, as Misty's face began taking on hues the Sinnoh coordinator didn't think were possible on a human being's face! "That's... one of your old Pokemon, I guess..."

Misty managed to hold her rage for a few seconds more... and then brought her hands to her head as if Psyduck had passed his headache to her, screaming like abanshee and with stylized rivers of tears streaming down her eyes like miniature waterfalls! "AAAAAAAARGH! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIIIIIS! THIS POKEMON IS A NIGHTMAAAAAARE!"

"_Psy?_" Psyduck asked himself, as if the situation was still unclear to him.

"_Pip, lup?_" Piplup answered with a shrug...

**oooooooooo**

"_Bayleef!_"

"Hahahahaaaa! Hey, take it easy, Bayleef! I'm not a lollipop or something!" Ash exclaimed in embarassment as he tried to subdue his Johto Grass starter's overeager affections. It was no secret how Bayleef was very affectionate to her young trainer, and since she was seeing him now after such a long time, she seemed to want to make up for lost time!"

"Hehehee... I can understand her, since she's not seen you for such a long time!" Tracy commented with a brief, jovial laugh. The young Pokemon drawer was joined by his Scyther, an old specimen he had befriended more than three years before, after he had been chased away from his swarm because of his advanced age. Despite that, though, the mantis Pokemon was still a formidable opponent. "I think it would be a good idea to bring her with you..."

"_Scyther!_" the mantis Pokemon screeched, nodding energetically in assent... and at that, Ash couldn't just say no!

"Well, I guess you're right, guys..." Ash answered. "So, Bayleef, how about it? Would you like to come with me once again, just like the good ol' times?"

"_Bay! Bayleef!_" the Grass Pokemon answered as she hopped around. Ash chuckled and brought out a Pokeball, reclaiming his old Johto Pokemon and placing her along with the others, before turning back to Tracy and Scyther.

"Okay, it's decided! I'm taking Bayleef and Heracross along... and the others I want to use, I already have them with me!" he said. "I guess that's it for now... by the way, where are Brock, Gary and professor Oak? They were here, one second ago..."

Tracy's Scyther pointed to a fence, near which many of the Tauros Ash had caught in Fuxia City's Safari Zone were calmly grazing at the grass... and, in fact there were the professor and his grandson taking a look at Brock's Gible. They seemed to be both fascinated by the new kind of Pokemon, and were watching him carefully, taking care not to alarm the small shark-drake.

"That's... quite the unusual Pokemon, Brock." the older researcher commented. "And a very interesting one at that. And... you said the little guy knows an attack you've never seen before?"

"Indeed, professor Oak." the dark-skinned boy answered, staying near his Gible as the small dragon looked around, seemingly unsure on what to do. "He once used it to save us from Team Rocket... but it's a move we never saw before, and even Cynthia's Garchomp did not know this attack - basically, it creates a ball of energy in Gible's mouth, which Gible then shoots and splits in many smaller bullets of energy which fall down on his opponents. I brought this Gible here with me... among other things, because I'd like to know more about this. Do you happen to know something? Or can you tell me who I should ask about it?"

"Hmmm. I have no idea, Brock, this is all news to me... but since this is a Dragon-type Pokemon, it makes sense that Lance, the Kanto Elite Four's dragon trainer, might be able to help you." Oak answered, getting lost in his own thought process to the point where he didn't see the spunky little dragon curiously approaching him. "I think he's the one who's best qualified for..."

"Hey, grandpa! Mind your labcoat!" Gary suddently warned him. The scientist looked around in surprise... and yelped in alarm as Gible's teeth had clamped shut on a tail of his labcoat!

"Aaargh! Hey, hey! Hold on a sec, Gible! I understand you're hungry, but that's my favourite labcoat!" Oak exclaimed as he gently but firmly tried to get his coat away for the small shark-drake's ravenous hunger! He managed to do it, but he was forced to sacrifice a part of it to the small dragon's maw! "Ugh... Brock, I'm afraid you need to teach a little more discipline to your Gible... you should teach him he shouldn't chew on other people's clothes!"

"Erm... well, yes, that's something I need to think about." Brock replied as he recovered his latest Pokemon, who was licking his lips in satisfaction after swallowing the torn tissue. "Gible, what have I said about not eating what people are wearing? We should have a talk on what's edible and what isn't, okay?"

"_Gible!_" the small Pokemon answered, a paw raised up in the air. Brock sighed as he understood that the little dragon did not seem interested in knowing much about manners, and it was going to be hard teaching him... but for now, better to stay focused on the "mission". The next day, they would have taken a boat to Cinnabar Island, and from there, they would sail to Sevii Islands.

Of course, the problem would then be what they would find there... which was why Brock was glad Gary was joining them in this mission.

"Alright then... Gary, who did you choose to bring along for this journey?" he asked Ash's former rival, who answered with a slight grin and a thumbs-up.

"Well, I may not be partecipating in leagues anymore, but that doesn't mean I've fallen behind in training my Pokemon!" he answered. "My Blastoise, Umbreon, Electivire, Arcanine, Nidoking and Kingler will be more than enough for this! Okay, now we just have to wait for Ashy-boy to be ready, which might take a while..."

Turning to Ash, Pikachu, Tracy and Scyther, professor Oak saw the young Sinnoh League winner raising a hand to say that he was ready... and one second later, he turned to Misty and Dawn. "Okay, everyone, I think we're good and ready to go! Hm? Hey, Misty, what's with the long face?" Ash asked curiously, seeing Misty's annoyed expression, complete with miniature storm clouds hovering over her!

"Don't. Ask." she answered, before moving aside and letting Ash notice the blank-faced duck with perpetual headaches following her like a shadow!

"_Psy-ay-ayyyy?_"

"Er... I guess I can see why she's annoyed..." Ash said to himself as he sweatdropped.

**oooooooooo**

"Hmm... so there is someone who's interested in Mt. Ember's legendary Pokemon... and in other ones, I dare say!"

"Yeah, and I don't like this one bit. That's why our leader, Giovanni, is taking all necessary countermeasures."

"But still, guys, don't you think we should take charge of the situation and put those impudent fools in their place?"

"Don't be hasty, Petrel, we have to keep waiting. After all, we do have our own plans... or should I say, our leader Giovanni has his plans. Blowing our cover now would be counter-productive. We must not draw attention to us unless it is necessary."

"Yes, Archer is right. We have no reason to be hasty, especially if we think Domino is investigating on her own. If it is necessary, we'll take charge of the situation."

"Excellent... okay then, Petrel, Proton, Ariana! Let's keep the other islands under control and see what happens. As the new Team Rocket executives, we have to watch out for any possible happening!"

"You're right, Archer, we'll be careful..."

**oooooooooo**

"Alright, Ash... are you ready? Have you chosen which Pokemon to take with you?" Misty asked as he and his friends went back to her and Dawn. The two girls had spent their time chatting and exchanging stories on their respective journeys: in particular, Misty had just finished telling Dawn about her earlier fear of Gyarados, how she was able to overcome it, and how she was able to take one in her team. Of course, she had pleaded for Dawn not to speak to Ash about this, or else Ash would never let her hear the end of it! Of course, Misty would have forced him to end it with a good whack of her mallet or her paper fan, but better safe than sorry!

"Of course I did!" Ash answered, proudly showing five pokeballs. "I had Bayleef and Heracross come back in my team, while I'm leaving Gliscor and Buizel here, at least for now. Now I'm ready, and good to go!"

"Okay then... the fery for Cinnabar Island departs tomorrow morning at eight o' clock, so make sure to be well rested!" ProfessorOak reccomended, joined by Tracy and Mrs. Ketchum. "From there, you'll have to take the coincidence or Sevii Islands, and you should be in Knot Island's port by tomorrow evening."

"Got it, Gramps! Everything is ready, anyway..." Gary answered.

"So, well... I guess that means we'll be saying goodbye for now!" Misty commented as she looked at Mrs. Ketchum. "Prof. Oak, Mrs. Ketchum... we're grateful for your kindness and hospitality, and we hope to see you soon and bring good news!"

"Of course we will! And... before you get to do it, Mom, I can already tell you not to be worried! I, Pikachu and our friends can handle ourselves... anyway, we won't run unnecessary risks, right, everyone?" Ash went on, as his mom approached him and ruffled his hair causing him to fell somewhat embarassed! "Huh? Hey, mom... please, don't... you make me feel like a kid!"

Misty giggled at that, earning herself a sideways glance from Ash.

"Hehee... you're right, honey, but what can you do? It's a mom's job to worry about her kid, even if you've grown a lot since last time!" Delia answered. "Okay, Pikachu... as Ash's best friend, I guess you know how to keep him out of trouble! Please... do the same now!"

"_Piii - kachu_!" Pikachu answered with some sort of military salute! Delia gave a caresse on the yellow mouse's head, then looked at Ash's group again.

"Well, guess there's no more reason for me to worry, then!" the young mother concluded. "I wish you a safe journey... and I hope you can come back safe and soon!"

"No problem!" Gary answered. "We'll be careful, and make sure everything is back to normal!"

"We won't let some rain and thunder stop us! No need to worry!" Dawn answered with a confident smile.

Delia smiled serafically. "It's just when I hear something like that, that I start getting worried!" she said, causing Ash, Gary and Brock to chuckle briefly, and Dawn to widen her eyes in wonder!

"Er... Mrs. Ketchum, I had no idea you knew my mom!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed.

As the group laughed from the little joke, they didn't see a familiar winged Pokemon watching them from above with multifaceted eyes, who soon did a 180 and rapidly flew back to the place she had come from...

**oooooooooo**

A vivacious, intermittent buzz told Jessie, James and Meowth that their scout Yanmega had come back, and as Team Rocket was disassembling their camp, they looked up to see the gigantic garner flying down.

"Oh, Yanmega... already back?" Jessie asked, after making sure her backpack was completely done. "So, what's the news? Are the twerp going to do something silly again?"

The giant dragonfly shook her head, her gigantic eyes briefly reflecting the rays of the sun as she buzzed something as an answer. Meowth stepped forward, carefully listening to the Bug/Flying Pokemon's droning.

"Hmm... she says the twerps are taking off to Cinnabar tomorrow morning... and then, they're taking the ship to Sevii Islands! Can you believe it, guys?" Meowth translated Yanmega's seemingly incomprehensible buzzing.

"Sevii Islands?" James asked. "Er... Jessie, Meowth, aren't those the same islands we heard of, the ones south of Cinnabar? I heard one of the Kanto Elite Four was born there, though she now living in the Orange Islands..."

"Exactly..." the feline Pokemon answered. "And that's not all... Yanmega says that there's someone she doesn't know in the twerps' group: a red-haired girl around Ash's girl, and a stuck-up kid with messy marroon hair..."

"Ugh... we know who they are, right?" Jessie exclaimed. "It's a small world, after all... Oh, well, we won't back down with that! We'll follow the twerps to the Sevii Islands, and we'll ambush them there and take Pikachu once and for all!"

Needless to say, James was less than enthusiastic about this. "Uuuugh... not another sea journey... woe is me..." he whined, recalling his seasickness with comical rivers of tears gushing from his eyes...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Heheheee, what can I say? I just know that Misty would simply adore Dawn's Piplup! ^_^**

**And there you have it! I guess there are quite a few things to look out for, aren't there? Will Ash's new team be enough to face whatever awaits them in their journey through the Sevii Islands? Will Team Rocket finally succeed at anything? And will Team Rocket's new executives have a hand in all of this? If you want to know, you just have to keep reading!**

**See you soon! **


	13. Arriving in Knot Island

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back, everyone! Welcome once again with the usual update to my Pokemon story! For this chapter, we're going to see Ash and his friends finallly arriving in Sevii Islands, not to mention we'll take a look at how other people are preparing themselves for the challenges that lie ahead! This, in fact, will mostly be a chapter to set things up before action really starts, so be patient just a little, and I'm sure you won't be disappointed when the time for the real battle comes!**

**Enjoy this chapter, and happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 13 - Arriving in Knot Island**

"Very well, Ursaring... Brick Break." Paul ordered, without missing a beat. His order was followed by a couple of frightening growls, one belonging to his bear Pokemon, and the other from the opponent he was facing - a gigantic Pokemon covered in thick plates of rock and stone, vaguely similar to a Tyrannosaurus Rex, with long and sharp stony protrusion coming out of its back, short three-fingered clawed arms and a long tail ending in some sort of spiked ball, like a morning star! It was obviously a Tyranitar, one of the most powerful non-Legendary Pokemon known, and a terrifying opponent for anyone. The fact that it was not a challenge to sneeze at was only compiund by the fact that even Ursaring, one of Paul's stronger Pokemon, was having trouble fighting this mighty beast.

Still, the huge bear was not one to be daunted by an opponent's sheer size. He raised his powerful front paws and got closed to the dinosaur Pokemon, preparing to strike with a blow against which Tyranitar would not be able to defend efficiently. Annoyed, the Tyranitar bent down on its rear paws... and even so, he still was quite a bit taller than Ursaring! The tyrannosaurus' jaws opened wide, showing rows upon rows of serrated teeth that looked like they could chew through stone... and a bright energy sphere formed inside of its maw. For a trainer with Paul's experience, that could only mean that Tyranitar was readying an Hyper Beam, its most powerful attack!

Ursaring never gave it the time to aim its shot: as soon as Tyranitar began charging, the bear Pokemon leapt up and raised its right arm, which was now glowing in a luminous aura... and then dropped down aand struck his opponent on the head with a mighty chop! The Tyranitar's eyes went wide, and it was forced to close its mouth, literally swallowing all the energy it had accumulated. Luckkily for it, the energy was still not enough to damage it, but dispersing its Hyper Beam like that still made the dinosaur lose its balance and fall on its back. A deafening crash accompanied the enormous Pokemon's fall, but as it dropped down, its tail quickly lashed forward and struck Ursaring as he was descending! The bear growled and fell as well, but both Pokemon were back on their feet a second later, and stood facing each other, catching their breath and waiting for the opponent to make a first move.

Paul, for his part, showed no outward reaction at that first clash... but privately, he had to say that he was impressed. He didn't think that Tyranitar could withstand a Fighting-type attack, against which it was doubly vulnerable... Butthen again, this only confirmed that the Pokemon living on Mt. Silver were really that powerful, and they were worthy opponents against whom his team could train. Sure, this also meant taking care not to get into a situation they couldn't handle, and not to fight too many opponents in a single day, but it was plain that this kind of training would have proved beneficial in the end. There was no need to be hasty, he just had to keep a constant pace, and not to overdo it.

Ursaring leapt sideways as Tyranitar lashed again with its mace-like tail, which ended up crushing a jagged rock. The grizzly rolled to get to a safety distance, then stood up and brought his guard up again as Tyranitar lowered its head and charged with all of its strength. Paul knew this was the right moment to act - in its frustration, the dinosaur Pokemon had lowered its defence, leaving itself wide open for the bear's next attack...

"Let's end this, Ursaring. Earthquake." the purple-haired boy ordered. Ursaring nodded slightly and, after catching his breath for a split second, raised one of his muscular rear paws and slammed it on the ground with all of his strength! A mighty seismic wave roared into existence and rushed towards the unprepared Tyranitar, striking it head-on and causing it to roar in angered surprise before it was lifted up in the air and brutally tossed on the ground, opening a few crevasses on the rocky cliff upon which they were fighting! For a second, Tyranitar tried to pick itself up... but in the end, the exhaustion of the battle took its toll, and Tyranitar slumped on the ground and fainted.

Paul's grim expression turned into a satisfied smirk. "That's good, Ursaring. Your performance was satisfactory for now." he said. "Okay... you've done enough for today, now it's time to leave it to someone else. Return."

The bear grunted what sounded like an affirmative as Paul recalled him in his Pokeball. For a second, the young Sinnoh trainer thought that he might as well capture that Tyranitar, and after thinking about it for a short while, he took out a Pokeball and tossed it to the downed opponent. The huge dinosaur was swallowed by the small metal ball, which swayed from side to side for a while, before settling and powering down. Satisfied, Paul picked up his latest catch and transferred it to his reserve.

"It never hurts to do a few changes to the team..." Paul said to himself. "Fine. Now... it's your turn, Torterra. Try not to disappoint me."

As Paul's starter materialized in front of him, both he and his trainer were unaware of a wild Pokemon that had been watching the scene for quite a while now, well-hidden behind a large fossilized tree. A Drapion, a huge scorpion-like Pokemon covered in a purple segmented armor, with small but sharp foreclaws and a long tail with two stingers, one on each side, had been intently watching Ursaring's battle with Tyranitar. It had been quite a long time since such a strong trainer had been there, and he couldn't help but be interested in that. Who knew, maybe that boy could give im the chance he had been waiting for for some time now...

Deciding that for now, it would have to do to just watch from a safe distance, Drapion climbed the petrified trunk of the tree, keeping his eyes on Paul and Torterra as they began looking for yet another challenge...

**oooooooooo**

Misty breathed in, filling her lungs with the salty air of the seaside. The travel to the Sevii Islands had begun early that afternoon, and now the ship from Cinnabar Island was about to reach Knot Island, the first of the islands. Finally, after a long time spent onboard, Sevii Islands were beginning to show on the horizon, and the redhead had to say that they looked really impressive, even at that distance. Plant life was plentiful, the beaches were well kept, and the volcano jutting out of Knot Island's profile looked quite majestic, like some sort of guardian keeping watch on all the islands. The young girl thought back on the journey to the Orange Island she had been in, along with Ash and Tracy. The more she thought about it, the more she noticed how much the archipelago they were about to visit looked like those islands, which she had fond memories of.

Sevii Islands looked peaceful from where she was standing, and nobody would ever have said that something alarming had been going on in those places. Even the strange weather Gary and Prof. Oak had spoken of was nowhere to be seen.. and yet, this was the place where the troubling events Ash and his friends were to investigate had taken place.

Misty sighed, her worries temporarily overwritten by a pang of nostalgia as she thought that, after all, that was the first of the new adventures she was going to live alongside Ash, Pikachu and Brock. There was some definite deja vu to those moments... and at that, Misty remembered the Togepi she had had for such a long time. Who knew how he was doing, now that he had evolved into a Togetic and had gone on his own way...

"Hey, Misty? You alright?" Dawn asked, popping up behind the redhead. The blue-haired girl, who until then had been walking around the bridge, admiring the spectacular vista of the approaching Sevii Islands and enthusiastic to be visiting a new place, had now seen that her new friend was keeping somewhat apart from therest of the group, and wanted to know whether she was alright.

Cerulean City's former Gym Leader looked up to her new friend from Sinnoh and blinked twice in surprise. "Oh, Dawn... sorry, I was just spacing out a little... but don't worry, I'm okay!" she answered. "It's just tht... well, seeing these islands for the first time made me think of so many things. You see, long ago, I, Ash and Tracy have travelled to a similar group of islands... So, I was thinking back on that journey, that's all!"

"I see..." Dawn answered, leaning on the ship's railing and looked to the open sea. It was getting late, and the sky was already taking on the orange hue of the twilight. For a few sconds, the two friends stood there watching the sea, without saying a word, simply enjoying the moment, at least before Dawn's curiosity got the better of her.

"Say, Misty... could you tell me something more about the Orange Islands?" the Sinnoh coordinator asked. "I'm quite curious to know more on Kanto... I haven't seen much of it yet, but it does sound like a very fascinating land to me."

"Oh, sure! It will be my pleasure!" the redhead answered. "Well... what can I say... we went to Orange Islands immediately after Ash tried - unsuccessfully - to win the Indigo League. And... well, we've seen a lot of amazing things and met a lot of people... among which, my idol Lorelei, one of Kanto's Elite Four! But I'm sure the most exciting part was when we went to one of the largest islands and we were caught up in a profecy of who knows how many years ago! Some crazy guy by the name of Lawrence III was trying to capture the Legendary Birds - Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres - just to get the attention of another Legendary Pokemon, Lugia, and capture him as well. But these thoughtless actions were causing natural disasters, and were about to mess up the planet's balance! Luckily, Ash managed to put things right once again!"

"Ash seems to have a talent for doing the impossible, doesn't he?" Dawn said with a smile. "And... tell me, Misty... you... you like Ash, don't you?"

Misty was left stunned for a split second as her face took on a hue very similar to her hair's! Then, trying to cough her embarassment away, she turned away and tried to deny what was already plain clear for Dawn! "Ugh... what... what are you saying, Dawn? As...as if I could ever get a crush on that clumsy, impulsive kid!" she grumbled, without managing to sound convincng. Dawn giggled to herself and decided to let things lie.

"Alright, alright..." she said appeasingly. "Sorry, Misty, it was just a question out of curiosity!". Misty sighed in relief - just when she thought she had dodged her sisters' embarassing questions, she had to put up with Dawn's... "Still, you're right, Ash is a very special person! As soon as we have time, I need to tell you a bit of what we went through in Sinnoh!"

"And I'll be really glad to hear about it!" Misty answered, before noticing that Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Gary were walking towards them, intent on joining in. "Oh.. hi, guys! So, what do you think of Sevii Islands right now?"

"I just can't wait to get off this ship, that's what I think!" Ash answered. As always, the young black-haired boy was glad to se a new place. "And... I have to say they look quiet from here. Of course, I'm not doubting Gary and Prof. Oak, but these islands don't look like they've been hit by a natural disaster or anything else."

"I can see that... but it's still plain to me that something weird is going on here, and we need to make things clear." Brock affirmed. "I can already guess that a Legendary Pokemon might be at stake here, and he's the one causing that strange weather."

Misty nodded. Brock really hadn't changed much - he was always the prudent, rational big brother of the team... except, of course, when some Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny or pretty girl in general was in sight. And if memory served her, he was also the most knowledgeable one, when it came to new, exotic locations. So, it was probably a good idea to ask him whether he knew anything about Sevii Islands. "Say, Brock... do you happen to know anything about these islands? I mean, are these interesting sights, cities, or the like?"

"Well, I do know something about them, now that I think of it." the dark-skinned boy answered. "For example, Misty... did you know that one of these islands is Lorelei's birthplace?"

Ash's eyes widened slightly as he remembered his meeting with Lorelei - it had been rather humiliating, as he had gotten a big head and had convinced himself that he could take on the Elite Four's Ice-type Pokemon... on the other hand, Misty predictably switched into fangirl mode!

"Wh... What? Are... are you sure, Brock?" she asked, her eyes sparkling in a way Dawn had previously thought impossible for a human being! "Lorelei... the amazing Lorelei... was born in one of these islands?"

"Er... Misty, I can understand your excitement, but do calm down a little..." the surprised Sinnoh coordinator said as she sweatdropped.

"Well... yes, it's true, and she sometimes gets back here to visit her hometown..." Gary explained, somewhat surprised himself at Misty's excitement, as he and Brock weren't there when Misty had met Kanto's most famous Ice-type trainer. "But I didn't think you were such a fan!"

"You aren't serious, are you, Gary?" Misty exclaimed in near-ecstasy! "Her Water Pokemon are amazing... and the way she fights! So cold and determined in battle, and yet so warm and friendly outside of it! She's a role model for me!"

"We... er... kinda guessed that..." Ash said with a brief laugh. Pikachu squeaked in resignation, lowering his ears... then, as soon as the first of the Sevii Islands was more clearly in sight, he pointed a finger to it and called for his friends' attention.

"_Pika pika! Pikachu!_" he squeaked, jumping around in excitement. Immediately, the team looked to the boat's left and saw that they had almost reached Knot Island's port without even taking notice of that! The passengers on the bridge were already starting to move, picking up their belongings and getting ready to disembark.

"Yeah, I can see that, Pikachu!" Ash answered, picking up the electric mouse and playfully scratching him on the top of his head. "Well then... let's see what the Sevii Islands are like! I'm sure we're in for one heck of a ride!"

Dawn, Brock, Gary and Misty all nodded in assent, unaware of how much Ash would have been proven right...

**oooooooooo**

"Phew... now this was a tiring day!" May sighed in relief as she sat on a tree stump and laid her backpack on the grass in front of her. Max couldn't blame her: after all, along with their Pokemon, the two siblings had been travelling for pretty much the whole day...

"You can say that again, sis..." the bespectacled boy answered as he stretched his spine. It wasn't really comfortable to hold all that weight... "Man, I think we've been walking more than any day we were with Ash and Brock... but it sure was worth it, since I had the chance to train my Pokemon and catch two more!"

"Yeah, that's true... by the way, why don't you let your Pokemon out, for now?" the older sister proposed.

Max nodded and took out the four Pokeball he had, opening them all at the same time to let out his Pokemon. "Okay, guys, you can come out! You did a good job today, all of you!"

His Mudkip and his Poochyena appeared in front of him in a flash, and two more Pokemon came out alongside them. One of them was a small animal with rather messy brown and white fur who looked like a raccoon, and had pointed ears, an elongated face, and a black "mask" of fur around his eyes... while the other one was a giant, big-eyed ladybug with five black dots on her orange wings, black antennae, and six hands each ending in a small gloved hand. Clearly, they were respectively a Zigzagoon and a Ledyba, both of which were rather common Pokemon for a beginning trainer.

The small Pokemon army formed a straight line in front of their trainer, each of them emitting their own trademark call and stretching, happy that the day had come to an end... although Poochyena and Zigzagoon glared at each other as if they were issuing a challenge to each other... it seemed as though the raccoon had decided that the grey hyena cub was going to be his rival!

"_Pooch?_" Poochyena barked, frowning.

"_Zigzag... zigzagoon!_" Zigzagoon answered as he scratched the ground in front of him with one of his forepaws, just like a bull getting ready to charge! Max and May looked at the two Pokemon, worried that they might start fighting... but luckily, the situation was defused when Ledyba fluttered between the two of them, convincing them to cease their ostilities.

"_Ledyyyy... ba!_" the giant ladybug said, placing one of her hands on Poochyena's nose and one on Zigzagoon's. After glaring at each other for a little while, the two quarreling Pokemon calmed down and turned away from each other, grunting in annoyance.

"Erm... I guess it will be some time before Poochyena and Zigzagoon learn to work together..." Max commented as he sweatdropped. "With the excuse that Poochyena was the Pokemon I caught him with, Zigzagoon has decided that he has to become stronger in order to get a rematch..."

"If they don't go overboard, I guess some competition can't hurt..." May said, gladly recalling her friendly rivalry with Drew... and her less-than-friendly one with Harley! "Well, that aside... Max, I think we'll get to Rustboro City soon, which means you'll get to face Roxanne. Are you ready? Because I do remember that it wasn't a walk in the park for Ash..."

"I know, sis... and that's why I'm currently trying to work up a strategy for facing her!" Max answered. "Mudkip and his Water-type moves will surely be helpful... but I kinda have a feeling he won't be enough on his own. No offense, Mudkip..."

The bespectabled young trainer stroked his starter affectionately on the head, as if to apologize, and Mudkip was thankfully understanding, and answered by rubbing his trainer's hand and repeating his high-pitched call. "_Mud! Kip!_"

"In fact, I'm afraid just one Water-type Pokemon might not be enough..." Max went on, before glancing at Ledyba, Poochyena and Zigzagoon. "Actually, not that I think of it, Ledyba's attacks might give her an edge against Roxanne's Rock-types, but at the same time, she's quite vulnerable to Rock-type attacks, so that could be risky. I still need to decide what strategy might be better..."

"_Ledy!_" Ledyba answered, before scratching her head with one of her gloved hands, as if she was thinking of away to get the upper hand herself. Poochyena and Zigzagoon, for their part, frowned slighty, knowing that they were at a disadvantage against Rock-type Pokemon themselves... they had to both think carefully of a possible way to win, and trust their trainer to work up a good strategy.

"Well, I can see you've got your work cut out for you, Max..." May said. "For my part, I'd advise you to count more on your Pokemon's speed. After all, Rock-types aren't exactly known for their agility, and they might have trouble against attackers who are both fast and persistent. But I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, right? For now, let's just think of getting some rest, and something to eat! It's getting kinda late..."

Max's stomach grumbled, confirming that dinnertime was drawing close, and Max rubbed the back of his head in embarassment. "Er... yeah, sis, I guess you're right! I had bought something to eat at the last town we stopped at, so we won't have to wait to eat something."

May blinked, somewhat disappointed. "Well... actually, Max, I was thinking of cooking up something myself. Some sort of homemade dinner, or something along those lines..."

Mudkip and Poochyena looked startled at that, even for just a second... and Max sweatdropped comically, as a sign that they were getting into a dangerous terrain! "Truth be told, sis... no offense, but your attempts at cooking are... well... let's just say there's room for improvement! It's... safer to just open up some canned food! No offense..."

May sighed in defeat - after all, there was no way she could deny what her brother was saying. "Alright then..." she murmured, as Max's Pokemon all sighed in relief. Danger had been avoided, for this once at least...

Still, May did not waste time thinking about that and, after standing up, she took out her Pokeballs and let her Pokemon out: her starter Blaziken, Beautifly, her newcomer Glaceon, and her trademark Skitty, Munchlax and Wartortle. "Alright, guys, you can come out! It's dinnertime at last!"

All of May's Pokemon appeared in front of her, and without her even needing to give instruction, Blaziken immediately began looking around to gather wood for the campfire as the other Pokemon relaxed, and May used those moments of calm to spend some time with her Pokemon team and feed them. Max brought out the food, and started distributing it around.

"Well... who knows where Hilde is, right now... maybe she's already gotten to Rustboro City? Hmmm, maybe not, I guess she too needs a little more training if she wants to defeat Roxanne... well, wherever she is, I hope she and her Pokemon are doing well..."

"_Mudkip!_" Max's starter exclaimed, raising the small crest on his head. Max got the message and stratched the Water-type Pokemon on the back of his head.

"No worries, Mudkip, I know she'll do just fine!" he affirmed. "Anyway, we need to do our best ourselves, right? We'll train even more, and we'll get to Roxanne's Gym in top form!"

"_Mudkip, mud!_" his starter nodded...

**oooooooooo**

Snowpoint City, the town that until a few days ago lay quietly at the foot of Mt. Coronet, and had now known its destructive wrath, seemed to be slowly going back to normal, after the unexpected disaster. People were already at work to rebuild what had been destroyed, and Zoey admired those people's good will... some of them had suffered a personal loss, and still they were pushing forward to make sure Snowpoint City could go back to normal. However, in order for the city to be really safe and to make sure such a thing couldn't happen again in the future, she and her friends needed to investigate what was going on there. Luckily, Candice seemed to have gotten over her shock, and the three girls were now standing before the city gates, checking their backpacks and their Pokemon teams.

"Okay, girls, our Pokemon teams are ready... and are well rested as well, I hope!" Maylene said, doing a few exercises to warm up her muscles. Both Zoey and Candice nodded as the red-haired coordinator finished checking.

"Yes, I guess so..." she answered. "Candice, do your parents know we're travelling to the glacier? I don't want them to be worried, with all that's happened..."

"No prob, Zoey, I already told them, and they were okay with it... although they obviously told me to be very careful!" the pretty Gym Leader said, her long black plaits orderly placed behind her back. "Okay, let's go then... the sooner we get to the bottom of this, the better for everyone else."

"I agree with that, let's get going!" Zoey answered, and the three began walking away from the city and on the paved road to Lake Acuity. Luckily, the weather seemed to have normalized, although it was still very cold... and despite her resistance to heat and cold, Maylene found herself forced to rub her shoulders in order to stop shivering.

"Whew... girls, I guess you were right after all... I should have worn heavier dressing! Achooo!" Maylene sneezed, turning her head sideways... and Candice, with a knowing smile, untied the shirt she kept tied around her waist and put it on the young martial artist's shoulders.

"There. At least you won't freeze half to death..." the Ice-type Gym Leader said, and Maylene thanked her with a nod as the girls kept walking towards their goal...

**oooooooooo**

"Aaaah! Here we are, at last!" Ash exclaimed as he almost leapt off the ship, touching Knot Island's ground at the head of his little group. The feeling of being in a new place, and the excitement deriving from it, were overwhelming for both him and Pikachu. "And so starts our Sevii Islands trip... well, I say we've started out great!"

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse agreed, before nimbly leaping off of his trainer's head and running towards the port. He stopped halfway through and motioned for the others to hurry up, before the other passengers came and the place got too crowded. "_Pikapi! Pikachu pika pika!_"

"Hehee... now, now, Pikachu, keep your fur on! Everyone will be coming now!" Ash told him. The rest of the team was catching up, looking a little tired from the long journey, but still fired up and ready to begin the new adventure.

"Hmmmm... I love the smell of the sea!" Misty commented after adjusting her backpack on her shoulders. "So, guys... we needto get to the port's exit, and then get to the city's main square, right?"

"Yes, that's just right..." Brock answered. "It's too late to get to work now, and we're kind of tired anyway, so we'd better just find a Pokemon Center to spend the night in."

"After which, we'll go get something to eat and get ready for the night." Gary went on. "We'll be getting up early tomorrow morning, and we'll try to find out what's going on around here... though, again, it looks strange to me that there has been nothing but fine weather ever since our journey began..."

"Alright, Brock... Gary..." Dawn answered. "Then, let's take our tickets and..."

"Erm... excuse me?" A faint, sweet and laid-back female voice interrupted Dawn, as a blonde girl wearing a faded green sundress with matching sandals and a pretty summer hat approached the team, looking somewhat lost and confused. "I... apologize for the disturbance, but I am in a bit of a bind." she said, as Ash and his friends turned to her. "I... er... have come here to do a commission for my family, but... this is my first time abroad, and I'm a little lost. Is... is it a problem if I ask you to help me out a little?"

"Hm? No, not at all!" Ash answered as he looked at the newcomer. She was about Misty's age or a little older, but she was also noticeably more calm, shy and possibly even clumsy. Still, she did look like she was lost, and they weren't the kind of people to refuse to help someone. "If you'd like to come with us, we can help you find a place where to eat and sleep... and possibly even a Pokemon center. You're okay with this, right, guys?"

"Of course we are..." Misty answered. "If you'd like to join us, we can help you find your way around here..."

The blonde smiled gntly. "Thanks... but I don't have Pokemon with me! You see, I'm not interested in battles, competitions, or whatnot... I know it's kind of unusual, but..."

"No need to excuse yourself!" Dawn answered. "I know a lot of people who don't work with Pokemon, at least not directly! It's not a problem, the Pokemon Center won't shut you out!"

"Thanks, everyone..." the girl went on as the team began heading to town. "You're really helping me out a lot! Oh, and this Pikachu? He's really cute, is he yours?"

As the blonde reached towards Pikachu and scratched him behind an ear, Ash chuckled goofily. "Hehee... yeah, he is, I know it sounds strange, but he was my starter!" he answered. "It's a bit of a long story..."

"We've got all the time in the world to hear it now, as we get to the Pokemon Center!" Gary proposed. "In fact, I think this evening will be more entertaining if we have one more person to speak to!"

And so, as they happily chatted with the newcomer, Ash and his friends began heading downtown... with three trenchcoated figures, all wearing hats and sunglasses keeping their eyes on them and trying - not too successfully, as such clothes were not too practical for an island close to the Equator - to blend themselves among the crowd.

"Phew... I thought this journey would never end... I was beginning to choke, in that stupid basement!" one of the three murmured angrily, as she tried unsuccessfully to hide her long mane of fucsia hair.

A young man her same age whose light blue hair were barely visible under his hat sighed. "I'm sorry, Jessie, but there's not much I can do about it. Staying on the bridge would have made me seasick again... and I was not in a hurry to be!"

"Okay, okay, let's not speak of this nonsense... and let's try to do a decent job, for once!" the third individual, a rather short fellow with a meowing voice, cut the discussion short. "If we keep it together, I'm sure we'll get lucky this time! Moreover, I was thinking that there are quite a few rare Pokemon around here! If we were to catch some of them and send them to the boss, he'd be even more pleased!"

"Hehee... not a bad idea at all, Meowth, we'll try that! But of course, Pikachu is still our top priority! We'll finally capture him, and our standing in Team Rocket will return to the good old times!" Jessie answered triumphantly.

"I can't wait for it! With the pay rise we'll get from this, I'll rebuild my bottle cap collection, and we'll be able to eat whatever delicacies we want, instead of munching on some snacks!" James exclaimed in joy! Now convinced that they would have come out victorious from all of this, Team Rocket began following Ash and his friends, ignoring the nonplussed expressions of the people around them.

"Crazy world we live in." a girl dressed in black and carrying a matching suitcase commented to herself. "Lots of strange people around... whatever. I'm here for another reason..."

**oooooooooo**

Candice looked apprehensively to the horizon, as the trio composed of her, Maylene and Zoey kept walking along the half-frozen road, surrounded by snow-covered field immersing the landscape in an almost poetic stasis. They had been travelling for hours, only stopping to eat something, and now evening was beginning to fall... along with the warmth!

"Girls, I guess we'd better stop somewhere, we've been walking for far too long now..." Maylene said, as if she could read her best friend's thoughts. "We certainly can't go much farther in the dark..."

"Yeah, I agree... and, truth be told, I'm beginning to feel tired as well..." Zoey said, trying to ignore the faint pain she felt in her legs and knees. "Candice, do you happen to know some place around here where we could spend the night?"

The pretty Ice-type trainer smiled graciously. "Of course! Don't worry, there are quite a few good places along the way, and in fact we should be close to one... there it is! On that snow-covered hill..." she exclaimed, pointing at a place she was quite familiar with. Zoey and Maylene looked harder and managed to see a small house with a sloping roof, a few clouds of smoke coming out of its chimney. "That's one of the most hospitable chalets around here. If we stop there, we can surely get a hot meal and a room for the night! What do you say, girls?"

"It's not like we have much of a choice anyways... and we can't go forward now that it's getting dark." Zoey answered, shivering from the cold. "Okay, girls, let's go!"

"Yay! I was really getting exhausted!" Maylene cheered as he began skipping and hopping towards the chalet... but she stopped cold a second later and lowered her head in shame. "Haaa... sorry, daddy, the heir to your dojo is still immature..."

"A little bit of immaturity is a good trade-off for a chance to dodge a cold!" Zoey joked as the girls reached the shelter. In less than ten minutes, they were in front of the chalet, and Candice knocked at the door. Luckily, the girls didn't have to wait for a long time, before the door clicked open and a rather lively-looking old man, with a thick white mustache and dressed like a mountaineer, peeked from behind it. Candice stepped forward and bowed to the old man.

"Good evening, Mr. Go!" the black-haired girl exclaimed. "We apologize for coming this late, but... I and my friends needed a place for the night, and we thought we should have come here! Do you have any vacancies?"

"Well, well, look who shows up to old man Go's door! Little Candice from Snowpoint City! Please, be my guest, young one... and your friends are welcome too! C'mon, girls, don't be shy, you don't wanna stay out in the cold!" the old man said, glad to see the young Gym Leader. "I see you're new faces around here! At least, I don't remember ever seeing you around here..."

"Actually, I've been here before, but... I never stopped for long, and I never came here anyways..." Zoey explained, entering the chalet after getting the snow off her shoes. She suppressed a shiver of pleasure as a nice wave of heat rushed over her. "My name is Zoey, and I'm Candice's kohai. Pleased to meet you!"

"My pleasure, kid!" Go answered. "In fact, I remember I saw you at the Sinnoh Grand Festival! Pretty impressive stuff!"

"Yeah, she really was!" Maylene answered. "Oh, but I should introduce myself as well! My name is Maylene, and I'm Veilstone City's Gym Leader! I and Candice have been friends for longer than I can remember... and, well, let's just say I'm here for personal reasons!"

"I see..." the old man answered as he closed the door and the girls took off their backpacks. "Now, please, make yourselves at home! By the way, Candice... I'm glad to see you're okay, I was quite worried when I heard about that avalanche. I hope nothing serious happened..."

"Sadly, Mr. Go, that's something I can't reassure you about..." Candice answered, her spirits dampening. "They weren't people I knew personally, but... there have been three victims, and the town is still quite shocked. I and my friends... want to understand how this could happen. Because... we're convinced that this disaster was caused by someone!"

"We're only stopping here for tonight..." Zoey said. "We just need to rest a little, and we're leaving tomorrow morning. Of course, we have the money for the night with us..."

Go nodded, smiling faintly. "Of course, girls... now, please, take a seat in front of the fireplace, and warm yourselves!" he suggested, pointing to a rather large fireplace at the other end of the room, a nice smell of wood and charcoal coming from it. "Dinner will be ready in about one hour, so... just be patient a little!"

"Thanks, Mr. Go! That's very kind of you!" Maylene answered as Zoey and Candice thanked him themselves. Then, the three girls all got seated in front of the crackling fire, warming themselves and getting rested. It was time to relax and enjoy each other's company... they were going to face some hard work the next day!

**oooooooooo**

The next morning, in Knot Island's Pokemon Center...

"Aaaah! Man, I reallly needed a good night's sleep! We've been doing some serious travelling recently..." Dawn exclaimed in satisfaction, after waking up at the first rays of the sun. As it was usually the case, Ash's team had stopped at the Pokemon Center for the night, joined by the girl they had met at Knot Island's port. After stretching herself, getting out of her sleeping bag and putting her boots back on, Dawn combed her long blue hair back in place and stood up, as even the other guests of the Pokemon center started waking up. Ash was huddled up against a wall, with Pikachu sleeping near him like he was a cat, while Misty, Brock, Gary and the other girl were opening their eyes just then.

"Hmm... good morning, Misty! Good morning, Gary and Brock! Have you all been sleeping well?" Dawn asked after waking up completely. Beock rubbed his perpetually-closed eyes and gave her a thumbs-up.

"I'd say so! I just hope we don't get to become too spoiled!" the young Rock-type expert answered jokingly before glancing at Ash, who was still sleeping soundly.

"I guess someone already got spoiled, huh?" Gary joked, not passing up the chance to tease Ash a little, like the good old times.

After tidying up her dress and checking on her cases, the blonde girl gently giggled at Gary's joke. "Your friend Ash... is the kind of guy to lay back when he gets the chance, right?" she asked.

Misty shrugged. "Eh, well... after all, I think he does have the right to get a break! I don't know if you've been following the Pokemon competitions in Sinnoh, but only a few days ago Ash placed first in the Sinnoh Championship! He defeated a rival of his, Paul, who had always given him grief before! Ash and Pikachu... and all of his other Pokemon, of course... have worked hard to get that far!"

"I see..." the blonde said. Just then, Pikachu began twitching his ears, and Ash's eyes slowly opened... and a few seconds after that, both he and his electric mouse finally woke up, shielding their eyes from the morning sun.

"Hmmm... nasty sun today... Good morning, Pikachu..." the young boy murmured as he tried to get reacquainted with the natural light. He managed to see his friends as they were getting up, and as soon as Pikachu had jumped down from his sleeping bag, he did the same thing. "Good morning, Misty, Brock, Gary, Dawn... you all slept well, guys?"

"Good morning, Ash! Yes, we all did!" Dawn answered cheerily.

"Okay, guys... today, we'll start taking a look at Mt. Ember, since it's the same place where the strange weather conditions started. But before that, I guess we should help miss... er... miss...?" Brock said. Just then, Ash and his friends took notice of a small problem... that is, they hadn't even asked the new girl about her name! "Erm... how embarassing, we didn't even ask you what your name was..."

"Oh? No, Mr. Brock, you don't have to apologize! I am the one who didn't even introduce herself... I was a little tired from all the travelling!" the blonde answered. "Anyway... my name's Tanya! Sorry, I'm such an airhead! And you all were so kind to me..."

"No problem, Tanya! We're not about to be angry over something so small!" Dawn answered. "Rather, we're glad to have given you a hand!"

"That's right!" Brock remarked... before his ever-present passion for pretty girls came back bubbling to the surface! "And when you're finished with what you have to do, if you have the time, it would really be a good way to end our stay to walk along the beach, staring at the sunset..."

Brock was already sparkling comially, and Misty, annoyed by the fact that Brock had never lost that habit of his, reached forward to grab him by the ear and drag him away from Tanya...

...but she was denied the chance as one of Brock's Pokeballs popped open, and Croagunk emerged from it, stabbing Brock's rear end with a well-placed Poison Jab! The casanova wannabe groaned in pain and fell to the ground like a sack of rice, before the annoyed Pokemon began dragging him away under Misty's, Gary's and Tanya's nonplussed eyes! Dawn rolled her eyes as Ash, after a brief laugh, explained the situation to them.

"hehehee... well, Misty, as you can see, you don't have to keep Brock on a short leash any more!" he said. "Croagunk, his new Pokemon, seems to have a sixth sense for when Brock tries to put the moves on a girl..."

"And as soon as that happpens, Croagunk comes out, and stops him with a Poison Jab!" Dawn finished with a wink. As Tanya listened in surprise to all of this, Misty nodded in approval and scratched Croagunk on his head.

"Well done, Croagunk! I guess we'll be getting along just fine!" she commented. Brock, still stiff from the poison Croagunk had injected in him, managed to murmur that life would be difficult for him, from then on...

"_Croa! Gunk!_" the toad Pokemon answered, just as one of Misty's Pokeballs snapped open as well and good old Psyduck popped out in front of Croagunk. After a moment of silence, the psychic duck began striking up a convrsation of sorts...

"_Psy... Duck?_" the duck Pokemon quacked, his head swaying from side to side. He seemed to be asking something to Croagunk... and the latter pointed at himself, his half-grin never leaving his face.

"_Croa! Gunk?_"

"_Psy-ay-ay! Psy-ay-ay, duck?_"

"_Croooa! Cro-cro-cro... Gunk!_"

"Oh, good grief... what on Earth are they talking about?" Misty asked in exasperation as she rubbed her forehead. Tanya tilted her head on one side and looked at the two Pokemon with wonder, and Gary, Dawn and Ash sweatdropped at that.

"Don't ask me... Pikachu, do you understand them?" Ash asked his best friend, who, in turn, began translating the strange conversation.

"_Pika! Pika chu, pika pika, pika chu... pika pi chu pikachu!_" he squeaked, his little paws moving to convey the gist of what Psyduck and Croagunk were saying. At that, Ash couldn't help but chuckle a little...

"Er... looks like Psyduck was asking Croagunk how did he manage to come out of his Pokeball by himself!" the boy answered. "Croagunk was kinda weirded out at that, since he saw Psyduck actually coming out by himself..."

"Psyducks aren't known to be that smart..." Gary commented dryly.

Misty smacked her hand on her face. "Ugh... it figures this stupid duck couldn't ask a sensible question!" she murmured. "Okay, Psyduck, you already made enough of a fool out of yourself..."

Misty recalled the clumsy duck in his Pokeball as Croagunk rubbed his forehead as well, as if he was saying he was surrounded by idiots!

"Your Pokemon are quite... unusual, I'd say! No offense..." Tanya commented. "I never saw Pokemon coming out of Pokeballs and beginning to chit-chat..."

"Oh, well, that's really nothing! Travelling with Ash, you come across the strangest Pokemon and people you could ever imagine!" Dawn commented. A few movements behind the desk caught her attention, and a few moments later, Knot Island's designated Nurse Joy appeared, already rested and ready to start her job.

"Good morning, everyone! We trust you all spent a good night here in the Pokemon Center!" the pretty rose-haired nurse greeted them. Brock would probably have started again with his ladykiller routine, if he wasn't completely stiff! He only managed to raise an hand and attempt a smile...

"Hehehee... good... morning... Nurse Joy... you... slept well?" he murmured.

"Erm... I guess I shouldn't ask too many questions..." the dumbfound Joy commented. "Anyway... again, good morning, and I trust you had a good night's sleep! This is your first time here in Sevii Islands, right?"

Tanya nodded. "Indeed it is... I'm here to do a commission for my family, but Ash and his friends are here to do research around Mt. Ember. I don't know what it is exactly, but..."

Joy's expression became somewhat grim. "Mount Ember? Hmmm... I won't stop you from going there, guys, but still I'd advise you to be very careful. There have been some strange activities around there, and a Ghost-type Pokemon trainer seems to have taken residence there, spooking visitors away. Her Pokemon seem to be very strong, so you shouldn't pick a fight with her!"

"Don't worry, Nurse Joy, it's not like this is the first time we run some risks! Right, Pikachu?" Ash answered. The electric mouse crossed his arms on the chest and squeaked in anticipation of victory, as Tanya stepped closer to Ash, her normally tranquil expression becoming, for just a second, somewhat more concentrated and thoughtful...

"They really are the same..." Misty answered sarcastically, though she was happy that Ash and Pikachu hadn't really changed too much. "But still... don't worry, Nurse Joy, we're rather skilled trainers, and we won't get in trouble. We're just sticking around for what we came to do, and then we'll be off!"

"But first, we should get Tanya to where she needs to go." Ash said. "By the way, where do you..."

"Well, it's actually pretty close!" the blonde said, interrupting Ash by getting close to him and putting an hand on his shoulder, in what was probably meant as a show of friendship. "I just needed to find my way around and see where I was going, since this is my first time here. Still, thanks for your help, and I hope to see you again soon!"

A little embarassed at the girl's closeness, and glmpsing Misty's expression growing annoyed, Ash mumbled something in response. "Er... well... it's okay, Tanya, no problem at all! We're glad to have given you help!"

"Still, I'm grateful to you!" the blonde answered. "Well, then... good luck for your job on Mt. Ember, and see you soon!"

Brock, finally back to normal, stood up and rubbed the place where his Croagunk's Poison Jab had hit. "Ugh... no prob, Tanya! Goodbye, and good luck!"

Gary nodded. "We hope to see you again soon."

"Of course... see you..." Misty muttered, trying to be kind even though that girl was getting too confident with Ash for her own liking.

Tanya picked up her bags and waved goodbye to everyone before exiting from the Pokemon Center, a shy smile on her lips.

"Well then... guess it's time for us to get ready!" Brock said as soon as Tanya got away. He recalled Croagunk in his Pokeball and began getting his backpack ready. "We're heading off to have breakfast somewhere... and then we're off to Mt. Ember. By the way, Nurse Joy, do you happen to know the weather forecast for today?"

The young rose-haired girl thought about that for a moment. "Hmmm... the weather should be fine, but with what happened recently, we cannot be sure. I'm afraid I can't help you there..." she answered.

"Well, no problem, we'll make do." Brock answered... before smiling at Joy in his most charming way! "And please, fair Joy, do not worry about us! Before the evening comes, we'll be back at the Pokemon Center and... Ah! Wait, Croagunk! Just kidding! You don't have to come out again!"

Croagunk's Pokeball was twitching, asif thetoad Pokemon had heard his trainer's intentions and wanted to come out and give him another stern warning!

"Heheheee... Brock, let me tell you that you're the most unlikely ladykiller I've ever seen!" Misty jokingly chided. "If even your Pokemon agree with that..."

**oooooooooo**

The girl named Tanya was walking through the small town, apparently looking around herself in search of the place where she had to go... and, in the meantime, she was looking behind herself from time to time, as if she wanted to make sure nobody was following her. As soon as she had gotten away from the Pokemon Center, the blonde girl slipped into a narrow street, making sure to be unconspicuous. Finally she took out what looked like a small communicator device from the neck of her dress, smiled to herself and activated it.

"_Hello? Hello, can you hear me?_" she whispered. "_Yes... Domino here! The first part of the operation went smoothly. I managed to get close to a group of visitors, and placed a bug on one of them. He will unknowingly show us what's going on on Mt. Ember, and what the outsiders have in mind. You just have to lay back and enjoy the show, Mr. Giovanni!_"

"_Well done, Domino. I knew I could count on you._" Team Rocket's don answered. "_Very well, I'd say we have the situation under control, for now. But keep an eye out on those visitors, and keep me updated. There could me other things we don't know about, and I'd rather be informed quickly._"

"_Of course, sir. Don't worry, I am Team Rocket's top spy, after all._" the young agent answered. "_I'll make sure nothing escapes me!_"

She could swear she had heard Giovanni nod from the other side of the conversation. "_Excellent. I'll leave you to your work then. Looking forward to good news, Domino._"

"_Naturally._" the girl concluded as the communication ended...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And so, finally, the team has arrived in the Sevii Islands, and it looks like they've got their work cut out for them, especially with the fact that Domino is already keeping tags on them, andthere are already some pretty mysterious people on Mt. Ember! On the other hand, Zoey and her friends seem to be doing okay for now... but of course, they haven't even started delving into the mystery yet! And about Paul... well, for now he might not be an important player, but stay assured that it won't stay that way for long! **

**That's all I have to say for now! I'll try to update soon, if real life allows me to, so stay tuned... and if you can, please leave me a review! They're always appreciated!**

**See you soon! **


	14. Mt Ember's Secret

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! Welcome back to your usual chapter of Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures!**

**Or maybe not so usual after all... in fact, at the moment, Ash and his friends are busy trying to uncover a dangerous plot to capture the Legendary Pokemon dwelling inside of Mt. Ember, and to do so, they will need to enlist the aid of an unexpected ally! And of course, there's always Team Rocket around, ready to cause trouble!**

**Or to get themselves in trouble, whatever the case is...**

**Anyway, this chapter marks the point where this story really begins to pick up the pace, and while there will surely be more relaxed episodes, this is where Ash and his friend start seeing that they've gotten themselves into an adventure of a truly epic scale! Really, it doesn't happen everyday to take part in a legend...**

**But enough of my rambling, and enjoy the chapter!**

**Oh, and on a more serious note... I'd like to dedicate this chapter to the loving memory of a friend of mine, who recently passed away. Me and my family will miss her forever, God bless her soul.**

**Here's to you, Maria Grace, and I hope you're now in a better place!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 14 - Mt. Ember's Secret**

"Phew... these mountain roads sure are tiring!" Dawn huffed, stopping just for a second to catch her breath as soon as the team made up of her, Ash, Pikachu, Brock, Misty and Gary had finished climbing up a slope. Sure those narrow mountain roads were useful, and a very impressive view could be seen from there... but fatigue was always an issue.

"After all, these are pretty much the only way we can reliably reach the mountain top." Gary commented as he adjusted his backpack on his shoulders. "Okay, guys, here we are... and it seems that the strange weather conditions Gramps spoke to us about are nowhere to be seen."

"_Pika pika..._" Pikachu answered, shaking his head in denial. The fact that there was nothing going on at the moment was not necessarily good news, and they all knew it.

Brock raised his always-closed eyes towards the sky: it was a bright marine blue, with several Wingull soaring above their heads and the sun shining brightly. In fact, those strange weather events they had heard about seemed to be far away from Knot Island.

"I'm sure this is no reason to drop our guard, though." the Rock-type Pokemon expert said. "I'd be willing to bet that there is someone behind these strange events, and they've only stopped for a short while. They'll be back sooner than we think..."

"In fact, if there were Legendary Pokemon at stake, this would make sense..." Ash said dubiously.

"And as soon as those guys are ready, they'll be back for another attempt." Misty continued with a nod. "Certain people will not give up on a target just because they've failed once..."

**oooooooooo**

"ACHOOO!" Somewhere else on Knot Island, at the same time, Jessie and James sneezed in perfect unison!

"Double bless you, guys. Maybe, if you were to keep your volume low, so that the twerps don't know we're coming, it would be better..." Meowth snarked. "We're practically underneath them... and with all the noise you're making, I wouldn't be surprised if they heard you on the other side of this stupid mountain!"

Jessie scratched her nose in annoyance. "Ugh... please, Meowth, you could do without your sarcasm, for once!" she muttered, trying to keep her voice as low as possible. After all, Team Rocket was at the moment on the track of Ash's group, following a narrow road just a little below the winding road Ash and his friends were on. Just raising their voices a little would have allowed them to be heard...

"Alright, alright, Meowth, you're right, we should have been more quiet..." Jessie admitted, somewhat grudgingly. "But still, we kinda had the feeling someone was badmouthing us..."

James sighed and tried to act as a peacemaker. "Okay, Jessie... Meowth... let's try not to be sidetracked here, okay?" he said with an accomodating smile. "The twerps are pretty much right above us, and we don't want to let them hear us, right? That way we might catch them off guard... after all, they still don't know we followed them here! At least, I hope so..."

"Well, James-boy here has a point..." Meowth admitted, noting that James seemed to have become somewhat sharper in those last few days. "Okay, guys, we have to be as silent as a grave here! At the right moment, we'll get the jump on the twerps and take Pikachu! And maybe some of their other Pokemon, why not? You can never bring too many Pokemon to the boss!"

"You're right, Meowth! I'm sure we will get a lofty bonus, after all these years of sacrifices and wandering around..." Jessie grinned... but jumped up in surprise and fear as a terrifying growl came from the road above them and almost caused the clumsy duo to fall down! The two kind-hearted criminals held tight to the stone wall near them with a surprised yelp, asking themselves what was going on up there...

**oooooooooo**

For their part, Ash and his friends were the ones who had been more startled by that animalistic roar... and, above all, by the appearence of a massive, clearly hostile rocky Pokemon right in front of them! The young trainers all looked in that direction, finding themselves face to face with a large animal similar to a rhinoceros, with a dry, tough and grey hide that looked like shaped stone! It was about three feet tall at the shoulder, with a short horn on its nose and a triangular head, while a series of rocky protrusions along its spinal cord, and it was advancing with prideful confidence on four stocky, clawed legs. There was no need to be Pokemon experts to know which Pokemon was that... it was a Rhyhorn, a Ground/Rock Pokemon known for its stubbornness, its dim wit... and, above all, its terrifyingly powerful charges! This partcular specimen looked somewhat old and a large scar was visible just below its horn. It probably had mistaken Ash and his friends as intruders in his territory, and had decided to remove the menace. Now, it was advancing towards them, white steam coming out of its nostrils...

Sadly for him, he was up against some first-class Pokemon trainers... and after a few moments of surprise, Ash and his friends stood on guard and grabbed one Pokeball each, as Rhyhorn lowered its head and scratched the ground with its front left paw...

"Okay, guys, be very careful..." Brock advised. "When a Rhyhorn starts charging, it can be extremely dangerous, but it can't change direction so easily. We can use this to evade it or knock it out!"

"My Water Pokemon are standing ready!" Misty said... one second before Psyduck popped out of his Pokeball once again!

"_Psy, ay, ayyyy_..." the psychic duck quacked, causing Misty to start developing an headache herself!

"Ugh... I really don't know who's more of a bonehead between you and that Rhyhorn!" the redhead muttered as Dawn and Gary sweatdropped. Misty embarassedly recalled Psyduck and tried to call a Pokemon who could handle the problem more effectively, such as Starmie...

But the trainers were denied whatever options they had in mind. A glowing sphere of black energy, coming from who knows where from above them, sped towards Rhyhorn and struck it head-on, causing it to moo in pain! As Ash and his friends stepped backwards in surprise, the rocky-skinned beast looked up to see who dared challenge him... and it grunted again, blowing more steam from its nostrils, as it saw a Drifblim floatin listlessly in the air above it, with a Gengar and a Dusknoir flanking him on both sides. All three were glaring menacingly at Rhyhorn...

"What...? Where... do those Pokemon come from?" Misty asked herself. "And... there are two of them I don't recognize! What are they?"

"The ballon-shped one is a Drifblim, a Ghost/Flying Pokemon wholets itself be carried by the wind... and the other is a Dusknoir, a Ghost Pokemon who, strangely enough, is incredibly strong physically." Ash exclaimed, ecognizing the two Sinnoh Pokemon. "But I have no idea who could own such powerful Pokemon..."

Nobody had missed the fact that they were powerful, in any event... even the rather stupid Rhyhorn understood that it was outmatched, and after trying to make a stand for one last time, in an attempt to at least save face, then it slowly backed away... and finally grunted in resignation and retreated. The Ghost Pokemon and the small group of trainers watched him go, with Gengar chuckling ominously in a taunting manner.

"Well, that's what I would call a last-minute intervention." Gary said, his Pokeball still in his hand. Pikachu himself didn't seem convinced that the three Ghosts were well-intentioned, and was standing near Ash, ready to unleash a Thunderbolt if they had proved hostile. "Who sent those Pokemon anyway? They sure aren't wild ones..."

"Indeed, those are my Pokemon!" A female voice answered, belonging to a small figure walking up beside Drifblim right then. Everyone narrowed their eyes to take a better look at the woman standing with her back to the morning sun... but she didn't wait for them to take a good look, and after motioning for her Pokemon to follow her, she nimbly leapt down, landing on her feet in front of Ash and his friends: she was a pretty girl of about twenty years of age, somewhat short but still well-proportioned, wearing nothing more than a two-piece blue Hawaiian costume, with white flowers decorating the bottom half, and a pink ankle bracelet. Dark-skinned, with short dark hair kept in a rather messy boyish style and two large pink flowers on the sides of her head, she had shining green eyes, contrasting with her islander looks, and the fact that she was walking barefoot on stones didn't seem to bother her in the least.

"However, with your permission, I'll be the one asking the questions here. This place has been chosen by a sacred Pokemon as his resting place." the mysterious girl said. "And if you're here to disturb his sleep, well... I'm afraid I'll have no other choice but to force you away. Tell me, then... why are you here?"

"Er..." Ash began, somewhat intimidated by the three ghosts floating down and placing themselves beside their trainer, like bodyguards. If the girl's intention was to look formidable, she was managing it all too well. "Actually... no, we didn't even know there was a sacred Pokemon resting here... we wanted to know more about certain strange events happening around here! You tell her that, Brock..."

But as he turned to his old friend, Ash noticed that he was not going to be any help - he was too busy being hypnotized by the newcomer's exotic beauty, and was watching her with his mouth hanging open and pink love hearts floating all around him!

"There we go again..." Dawn murmured, as Misty reached forward and yanked Brock away from the girl by holding him by an ear!

"Sigh... I apologize for my friend here..." Misty muttered, as Brock was snapped out of his trance with a pained groan! "Anyway... we're from Kanto, aside from my friend Dawn here, who's from Sinnoh." she went on, motioning at Dawn with her head as the blue-haired girl waved politely at the newcomer. "We were sent here by Professor Oak, who was worried because of strange events happening around here, and elsewhere in the world. I guess you already know of the strange weather in the more recent days..."

The island girl became more serious. "Hmm... so you're from Kanto, and you come on a commission from prof. Samuel Oak? Okay then, guess I can trust you in this case... Actually, I'm here for the same reason. These weather anomalies are all the work of a group of ruthless Pokemon hunters who are trying to awaken the Pokemon sleeping inside this volcano. Team Vicious, that's the name they go by."

"Team Vicious? Oh, man, not another criminal group..." Ash muttered as he shook his head. Still, as he said that, he could not shake the feeling that he had already heard that name before... it was a memory buried somewhere in his mind. "And I guess they want to control this Pokemon... and others... for their interests!"

"Exactly." the girl answered. "Long story short, those guys came a few days ago here and started scouting Mt. Ember in a suspicious way. My Ghost Pokemon..." she motioned to Gengar, Drifblim and Dusknoir "...kept them under their eyes for a lot of time, until they attempted to strike, and that's when we faced and beat them. But they'll be back, they're not the kind of people who give up that easily."

"I can see that..." Gary answered. "Well, in fact, in a previous occasion, strange weather events were linked to the fact that someone tried to capture the Legendary Birds, Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, and use them to summon another Legendary Pokemon."

"Yeah, that was Lugia... I wasn't with Ash and Misty then, but Ash told me about that, and I kinda got an idea..." Brock cleared up, now shaking his girl-induced trance off. "And... you think this Team Vicious wants to do the same now?"

"No doubt about it, and they're well organized as well." the dark-skinned girl pointed out as she dusted her dress. "I don't know who's the leader, but I do know that the group on this island is led by a notorious Pokemon hunter... of course, not the good kind of notorious! I guess you already heard of Pokemon Hunter J, right?"

"_PIKAAAA?_" Pikachu squeaked in alarm and surprise.

Dawn widened her eyes. "What? Miss... you mean... that woman is still alive?" she exclaimed.

"Hunter J..." Misty said, wondering what Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Dawn were shocked by. "Yeah, I heard about her. Rather than an hunter, she's pretty much a mercenary and a Pokemon kidnapper who would do any job, no matter how dirty, for the right pay. Yeah, I heard about her, and not well at all... but I also heard she had perished in a blast just a little before the Sinnoh Conference had begun, in mysterious circumstances. Guys, do you happen to know more about this?"

"Of course we do!" Ash answered angrily, a fist clenched in front of himself. He could never forget those moments... "We have seen J's flying machine blow up after being hit by the Lake Trio's Future Sight... I have no idea how that woman could survive!"

"And anyhow, Misty... believe me when I say that woman more than earned her reputation!" Dawn said. "I've never seen anyone that brutal and ruthless..."

"I see you already know who we're dealing with..." the dark-skinned girl answered. "Well, at least you know what to expect... hold on a second here, kiddo! Did you just said you saw that woman's flying vehicle explode? Let me guess, are you the winner of this year's Sinnoh Conference?"

"Ehm..." Ash was quite surprised by such a direct question. "Actually... yes, I am... but what does this have to do with... How do you know?"

The island girl giggled. "Hehehee... you know, one of the perks of being an Elite Four is that you're one of the first to know such things!" she revealed, much to everyone's surprise. "Exactly... my name is Phoebe, and I'm one of Hoenn's Elite Four. As you can see, Ghost Pokemon are my field of specialization. I trained in Mt. Pyre, in a remote Hoennn region, to be able to communicate with Ghost-type Pokemon, and now I've come because I sensed that something was upsetting the balance here! So... here I am, talking with you! We seem to have the same goal, after all! Hehehee..."

"An Elite Four from Koenn? That does explain a lot..." Gary affirmed. "Well, what can we say, miss Phoebe, we are very pleased to meet you... but at the moment, we have a somewhat urgent maatter to think about. We have to stop J and her minions, as soon as they come back for more..."

"Exactly..." the Elite Four answered. "My other Pokemon are patrolling the zone around Mt. Ember, so thar we'll be ready for when the intruders come back, but one can never be..."

Phoebe stopped short, her eyes widening and her body stiffening, and for a second, Ash and his friends feared she wasn't feeling well. "Miss Phoebe, what's the matter?" Misty exclaimed.

"_DUUUUSK?_" Dusknoir howled - despite not even having a visible mouth - as Drifblim and Gengar floated down to assist their mistress. Luckily, she was back on her feet in a few seconds.

"I'm... okay, everyone! Thanks for the concern." Phoebe answered. "It's just that... I just received a telepathic message from my Banette! Apparently, she and her friends just found J's flying machine approaching Knot Island once again. They seem to be on the other side of this mountain, and they're about to enter the maze of galleries digging through Mt. Ember!"

"Cripes, already back?" Misty exclaimed as she and Phoebe recalled their Pokemon. "A... telepathic call? One day, miss Phoebe, you will need to explain to me how that works... but for now, we have to stop those guys!"

"Still, they're on the other side of the island..." Brock noted. "Can we reach them in time?"

Phoebe winked astutely. "No worries, I and my Pokemon have been here for quite a few days already, and we know a thing or two about this island! Being able to speak telepathically with my Pokemon helps..." she answered serenely. "I know a few ways around here that can bring us to the other side of the mountain and get the jump on those criminals. I just hope your Pokemon are up for a fight..."

"_Pika pika chu!_" Pikachu answered with an energetic nod, before turning to Ash, Misty and the others. "_Pika pi! Pikachu pi! Pika pika chu?_"

Ash smiled brightly and gave a thumbs up to his best friend, who answered with a similar gesture. "Heheheee... of course we're ready, Pikachu! J won't escape this time!"

"Excellent!" Dawn concluded. "Then, let's go now! Miss Phoebe, we're on your side! Just tell us where to go..."

**oooooooooo**

A few metres below, on the narrow road climbing the side of the mountain, Team Rocket had been listening to the whole conversation... and they were finding themselves making some last-minute adjustments to their plans.

"Hey, guys, you heard that, didn't you? I'm afraid we're biting off more than we can chew here..." James murmured. "Not only is that woman, J, still alive... and as a trainer, she's stronger than the two of us put together... but we have an Hoenn Elite Four on our hands! She isn't an opponent we can face..."

Albeit begrudgingly, Jessie had to agree with James. "Tch... you're right, we can't face her head-on..." The fucsia-haired girl admitted. "We have to count on surprise and subtelty, if we want to get Pikachu..."

"An... you already have an idea, by chance?" Meowth asked. He wasn't sure whether he wanted to hear a yes or a no...

"Well, not for now...but I'm sure I'll think of something!" Jessie answered, without losing her trademark confidence. Meowth mentally kicked himself - he had to know that would be the answer! "First off, guys, let's keep on this road! As long as the twerps don't know we're here, we've got an advantage on them, right? We'll follow them and, when they least expect it, we pop out and take Pikachu! Piece of cake! And we won't even have to face J and that spooky Elite Four chick!"

"I'm not sure this will end up well, Jessie..." James sighed, as the goofy criminal trio walked towards a rough-looking ramp of natural stone stairs, that seemed to be going right where Ash and his friends were headed to. Despite its look, it was resistant enough to allow the three of them to safely cross...

"Oh, quit being so wishy-washy, James! No pain, no gain, right?" Jessie repriminded her more timid companion. "We just need to play our cards right, and we'll come out on top!"

Meowth sweatdropped. "Why do I have this feeling we'll get a nasty surprise dropped on our heads?" he muttered to himself.

**oooooooooo**

On the other side of the island...

"So, navigator? How long till we are able to descend?" J asked, her voice sounding more like an order than a question. "I think you're taking far too long to have this machine land, so get a move on!"

The navigator, another Team Vicious member who was somehow trying to stabilize the huge vehicle at it descended, gulped nervously, not wanting to risk J's rage. "Er... I'm sorry, miss, but it's not as easy as it may seem! I have to stabilize the vehicle during landing, and take care not to hit the walls... or else, our engines could be seriously damaged!"

In fact, the place was not exactly ideal for landing, with its sheer walls of stone dropping down into a turbulent sea. There was very little place for maneuvering, but this hardly seemed to matter to J and her minions, and the vile huntress only gave the ill-fated navigator more pressure to deal with.

"Well, you were chosen as a pilot because you were the one with the most experience, right?" she stated impatiently. "So, try to find a way."

The pilot tried to protest, but he saw that it was pointless trying to argue with her... so he just grit his teeth and went back to work, always feeling the grey-haired woman's glare upon him, even behind her trademark visor...

Finally, after a few tense minutes, J's flying vehicle stopped, and its engines turned off with a low buzz. The huntress nodded in approval, then raised her hand to call for her minions' attention.

"Very well. I can see you're all ready at this point." she declared as soon as her numerous underlings gathered in front of her, a few moments after. "You well know the orders. Our mission is to penetrate Mt. Ember and reach its innermost chambers, where Moltres lies sleeping. Once we have awakened him, we will all return to the airship and use the onboard weapons to capture him. Such a Pokemon is well beyond the capabilities of pretty much any trainer in our group... but once we've captured him, our mission will be completed. If anyone tries to interfere, eliminate them without mercy. Failure will not be tolerated, do I make myself clear?"

"Of... of course, Miss J!" her minions exclaimed in unison. J briefly smirked in satisfaction, as a door on her airship's side slid open, connecting with the entrance to a cave in the rocky wall's side. The huntress grabbed a strange Pokeball out of her belt - a black orb with violet streaks across its surface - and regarded it with grim satisfaction. The orb seemed to exhale a palpable feeling of cold and darkness, as if there was something inherently... wrong... about it.

"Then, I have no need to add anything else." J concluded. "We can start the operation. I trust we will meet with success this time."

"Yes, madam!" the other Team Vicious members exclaimed, fearing the consequences of failure...

**oooooooooo**

Travelling to the other side of the mountain hadn't been as difficult as Ash and his friends had feared, though it certainly hadn't been easy. Phoebe was leading them through a complex maze of stone walls, bushes, plants and small holes, and they all had to keep their eyes open to avoid mishaps...

"Ow! Man, it's not exactly what I'd call an easy road..." Ash commented as he nrrowly dodged a low branch of a tree. "Anyway, miss Phoebe... can I ask you something? What kind of Legendary Pokemon does lie in this volcano? Obviously, it will be a Fire-type, but as for the rest..."

"Yes, I do know..." Phoebe answered. "It's Moltres, the Fire Titan! One of the most notorious legends in the whole Kanto continent, am I correct?"

Ash's eyes widened slightly. Of course he knew about Moltres... he had met him face to face, in fact, back when he, Misty and Tracy had had to deal with the crazed collector Lawrence the Third... but how had Moltres ended up there, on Mt. Ember? The only reason he could come up with was that Moltres had chosen that place to rest after the collector's defeat, in order to rest and avoid being disturbed.

"Exactly... Moltres is one of Kanto's three Legendary Birds, together with Articuno and Zapdos... and it does make sense that he'd choose a live volcano to find shelter." Brock commented. "So, now, those mysterious guys led by J are trying to find and capture him..."

"We have to stop them!" an alarmed Dawn exclaimed. "It will be a big problem if they were to get such a strong Pokemon! Miss Phoebe, do you have any idea where to go from here?"

"They will certainly try to reach the heart of the volcano." the island girl answered assuredly. "That's where Moltres has probably taken shelter. Should those criminals disturb him enough, the Fire Titan will awaken and take flight again. And at that point... well, I'm pretty sure they have thought of some device to take Moltres prisoner or control him."

Pikachu grit his teeth. "_Pika pika, pikachu pi pikachu..._" he said worriedly.

"Yeah, I know, Pikachu..." his trainer answered. "More calamities would hit Sevii Islands! We have to stop them before they get to Moltres! So, let's not waste time! If we catch them off guard now, we'll take care of the problem before it comes up!"

"Wow, our Ash actually made sense, for once!" Misty giggled with amused sarcasm. "Tell me, Mr. Sinnoh champion, did all that travelling develop even your reasoning capabilities as well?"

Ash pouted comically. "Hmph! You're sooooo very funny, Misty! For your information, my brain has always been the same!" he exclaimed. "It's just that... well... y'know, I usually think actions speak louder than reasonings! That's all!"

Dawn, Brock, Gary and Phoebe chuckled briefly. Even from those few moments, the Hoenn Elite Four member could get an idea of what kind of people those Kanto trainers were, and that they were bound by a sincere friendship time had not damaged at all... a bod that went beyond their common love of Pokemon...

"Okay, okay... jokes aside, I think your friend is right, we need not waste any more time here." Phoebe finally said. "Okay then, follow me. I know a path that, from here, should be able to take us all the way to the heart of the volcano! Be careful, though, the heat will get more and more unbearable the more we approach..."

"Hold on!" Gary interrupted by raising a hand. "Hold on a second, guys? Can you hear this? It's sort of like... a distant buzz, don't you think so?"

"Hm? What do you..." Dawn answered, an hand near her ear as she strained to hear what Gary was talking about. All fell silent and listened carefully, only to discover that Gary was in fact right... even if only faintly, a distant buzz of engines could be heard, and it wasn't hard to imagine what could have caused it...

"Oh dear... guys, Gary's right! There IS something strange around here..." the blue-haired girl affirmed. "You can hear this, can't you?"

"Yeah... they must have stopped somewhere near the coastline..." Brock said as soon as the noise of the engines died down. "That means that, if we take theriht direction, we can intercept them before they reach the inner part of the mountain. That would be the ideal scenario, if only we knew where to look for them."

"Hmm..." Phoebe started to think about that, when another trio of Ghost-type Pokemon popped up out of nowhere, all from a different direction. A Rotom, crackling with electricity; a Banette, who was grinning cheekily; and an elegant Mismagius, descending down from the sky like some sort of dark fairy. "Oh, here are my other Pokemon! I was just asking myself where they had been... So, guys, have you seen those scoundrels anywhere?"

"_Rotoooom?_" the electric spectre asked suspiciously, motioning at Ash and his friends, but Phoebe told him there was nothing to worry about.

"These guys are on our side, Rotom!" the island girl told him. "They're here to help us against J and Team Vicious, and to stop them from capturing this volcano's sacred Pokemon!"

"What strange Pokemon..." Misty said, looking at the ghostly trio with wonder. "I already saw a Banette, and the bigger one must be a Misdreavus evolution... but that little Rotom guy, I never saw that before!"

"Well, it's quite a rare Pokemon, in fact..." Dawn explained to her newest friend. "It's a Ghost / Electric Pokemon that can take possession of various electronic devices, and use them to vary his own appearence and his combat abilities."

"Really? Wow, there sure are a lot of strange Pokemon around..." Misty commented as she kept looking at Rotom, as the latter floated around his trainer.

"Anyway, guys, to go back to my question... have you seen where J and her men are at?" Phoebe asked. "We need to stop them, before they can awaken Moltres..."

"_Banette!_" Banette answered, pointing to the entrance of a cavern with one of her clawed hands. It looked like it would take them straight in the innermost parts of the volcano...

"Hmm... okay, so if we go there, we can take those guys by surprise. Sure, it does seem quite risky, going in the dark like that..." Ash commented as he took a good look at the entrance.

"That's true, but it's not like we have much of a choice, at this point..." Brock said. "Alright... miss Phoebe, you know this place better than the five of us put together, I guess. Could you please lead the way? Our Pokemon will help you as much as they can..."

"No problem, just follow me!" the Ghost expert answered after recalling Banette and Mismagius in this respective Pokeballs, leaving her Rotom out. The electric ghost floated near his trainer, and as soon as the team began their descent in the darkness, he used a Flash attack, casting a bright yet eerie light everywhere around him. "Great job, Rotom! You're really the best when it comes to dungeon exploring, aren't you? Hehehee..."

"_Rotooom!_" the strange Pokemon answered with a bright smile. Brock nodded and decided that he might as well make himself useful, calling one of his strongest Pokemon.

"Okay, guess I can help out as well..." Pewter City's former Gym Leader decided. "Come, Crobat! We need your help!"

The Pokeball snapped open, and out came the monstrous yet friendly giant bat, soaring in front of Ash and his friends with a shrill call! "Sorry for bothering you, Crobat..." Brock told him. "But... we kind of need your help here not to get lost in this maze! Could you use your Supersonic attack to help us out?

"_Crobaaaat!_" the Flying / Poison Pokemon screeched, majestically spreading his four wings. Despite the rather narrow place, Crobat was able to fly around without problems, and he ddn't seem to be too concerned about the walls and the ceiling. In fact, just a second later, the huge bat turned in the direction Rotom was floating towardsand, leaving the electric ghost behind himself as not to risk hitting him with his attack, took a deep breath and let out an incredibly high-pitched scream that hit the walls of the cavern and bounced upon them. Then, by simply taking care of the time the soundwaves took to go back, Crobat could guess which ways were dead-ends and which weren't. With a small nod, Crobat used one of his secondary wings to point at a small path on the team's left side.

"Great job, Crobat! This way, we can reach J and her men in a snap!" Misty praised him, before following her friends in the passage...

**oooooooooo**

"Phew... wow... hey, Jessie, let me just say that it wasn't such a great idea to go this way! I'm afraid we got lost..." poor James murmured, leaning on a wall, as he dabbed his sweaty forehead with an handkerchief. To walk through those heated passages was murder, and they didn't seem to know where the way out was...

"N... Now, come on, James! Don't say such stupid things!" the fuxia-haired young woman exclaimed, without sounding too convinced. "I know perfectly well where we're going! Now... er... if only we could get past these... hmm... slugs?"

Jessie stopped for a second as what looked like small puddles of red-hot lava began filtering through the passages in the walls of the cavern they were in - it was obvious that they weren't lava puddles, though, but rather slug-like Pokemon with a pair of huge, droopy-looking eyes regarding Team Rocket with a vaguely surprised expression. Without a doubt, it was a group of Slugmas, Pokemon known for their slowness and for the fact that they thrived in volcanic areas...

"You mean these Slugmas, right?" Meowth said. "If ya trust me, they don't look like they'll give us trouble. Please notice how smart they look..."

James sighed in relief. "Well, that's good..." he said, as the Slugmas began slithering away, uninterested in tangling with them. "At least this time we get away clean... but we still have to find our way out of here..."

"No problem, James, it's all under control!" Jessie said. "You only have to follow me, and I'll bring you out of here before everything is said and done!"

"Yeah, this is like the fifth time we hear that..." Meowth snarked. He knew all too well how things usually ended up for them, and he wasn't sure that this trip through Mt. Ember's galleries would be any different.

"Now, now, I just had to get a few pointers, that's all!" Jessie replied. "Now quit your bellyaching and let's try to get away from... Ouch!"

"Careful, Jessie!" James exclaimed when he saw his partner-in-crime tripping over a round black rock that seemed to have been strategically placed in the way! Jessie flailed her arms about for a few moments, thankfully regaining her balance just in time, and kicked the half-hidden rock in frustration.

"Grrr... you stupid stone! Did you really have to end up here, of all places?" Jessie growled. As soon as she said that, though, a pulsating vein appeared on the rock's surface, and the girl stepped backwards in confusion as a soft, crimson red body flowed out of a small fissure in the lower side of the stone... anda pair of burning red eyes, each one placed at the end of a short stalk, glared at her with resentment. Even the Slugmas, who until then had been calm and unconcerned, were showing irritation at Jessie's reaction...

"Ooops... Jessie, I'm afraid you just kicked a Magcargo..." James murmured. The gigantic lava snail had just come out of her shell, in which she had been napping, and she hadn't been pleased with Jessie's outburst... and especially her kick! A crimson flame erupted on the giant snail's rock-hard shell, as if to express her irritation...

"Oh... er... hehehee... good evening, miss Magcargo!" Meowth tried to salvage the situation, although the firey mollusks didn't seem too interested in talking this over. "Y'see... I and my friends are only here in passing... and, with your permission... we'll kindly take our leave from this place... no hard feelings, right? See ya... AAAAAARGH!"

Magcargo's answers to the feline Pokemon's clumsy apologies was to open her toothless maw wide and shoot a Flamethrower, hitting the cat Pokemon's tail and setting its tip on fire! Meowth jumped up at least three feet in the air and immediately started to flail his tail around to extinguish the fire. Then, as all the lava slugs began slithering down the walls and heading towards them, Team Rocket wisely thought that discretion was the better part of valor and began running away!

"Aaaaaieeeee! Why does it always have to be this way! I can't stand it anymore!" an exasperated Jessie screamed, keeping her head low as to dodge the Lava Plume attacks the firey Pokemon were throwing at them!

"Less talking, more running, please!" James exclaimed, with stylized rivers of tears comically flowing down his cheeks. "I don't wanna become barbecueeeee!"

"My poor tail is on fireeeeee!" Meowth whined as he kept blowing on the tip of his tail! All the Slugmas and their Magcargo leader tried to slither after them, but their slowness allowed Team Rocket to easily get away, and after blowing one last Flamethrower attack out of frustration, Magcargo grunted, as if saying 'serves you right', and motioned to her "little sisters" to follow her back to their hideout...

**oooooooooo**

With an high-pitched whistle, Crobat pointed to a larger corridor in front of the team, and Brock nodded and smiled at him to compliment him on a good job, while Phoebe motioned to Ash and the other trainers to follow her inside. "Okay, guys, I guess this is the place! Get your Pokeballs ready, I don't think J and her minions are too far away from here." the Ghost-type trainer whispered. "We have to strike while we have the advantage."

"No worries, Phoebe. We'll stop those guys, and we'll keep them from catching Moltres." Misty said. "Provided Psyduck doesn't pop up uninvited again... I swear, I'll have to tell that silly duck a thing or two, someday..."

"Keep focused, everyone, we're almost there..." Gary reccomanded as he saw Rotom and Crobat stopping in midair. Pikachu approached the sparkling spectre and the giant bat, his ears perked up and read to catch even the slightest noise... and he managed to hear unknown voices and chattering coming the room they were about to enter! They were too far away for him to hear what they were saying... but it took no genius to understand those were J and her henchmen!

"What's the matter, Pikachu? Is that... those people?" Ash asked his best friend. Pikachu nodded and squeaked a warning to his trainer, who grit his teeth and motioned for the others to follow him, as the time to act was now! The team of trainers quickly came out of the corridor they were in and approached J and no less than eight mysterious individuals dressed in uniform and gas mask who were gathered around the evil huntress, listening to her instructions! The team's unexpected appearence had the group of criminals turn their way with a start.

"Hold it! What are you trying to do?" Ash exclaimed, he and Pikachu stepping up first.

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse's cheek began to crackle with electricity, as he stood ready to unleash a Thunderbolt on the enemies...

"Ash Ketchum... you again." J murmured annoyedly after a brief moment of surprise. "Looks like every job I accept, you and your little friends are there to make things difficult for me... and you've even brought new people to the party this time, how nice." She glared at Misty, Gary and Phoebe, who were standing ready with their Pokeballs.

"Now that we know you're involved, we cannot just let you do as you please!" Dawn shot back. "We can't allow you guys to catch this island's Legendary Pokemon! You've done enough damage as it is!"

"Business is business." J said simply, as she studied the six trainers in front of her. There were three she knew nothing about, and one of them was obviously the girl who had given her men grief...

"Really? And... who gave this particular job, to call it this way, to you?" Phoebe shot back, trying to put up a threatening front. Hard to look intimidating when you're barely five feet tall and only dressed in an Hawaiian-like costume...

Smirking slightly, the older woman spun a black Pokeball around in her hand. "This hardly matters now, don't you think? A professional never reveals details on her employer, anyway." she answered. "And in any case, that's the last thing you have to worry about."

"If I may, miss J... I'd like to add something myself! I've still got a beef with some of these kids!" one of the eight minions exclaimed all of a sudden. Brock looked at him as he stepped out of the ranks and walked towards them... there was something oddly familiar about that guy, whose face was hidden by his helmet, but Brock wasn't sure what...

"Hmm... so you and them go way back, huh? Be my guest..." the mercenary woman said as she smirked in amusement.

"If I recall correctly... you three..." the masked guy pointed to Ash, Misty and Brock, ignoring the confused Gary, Dawn and Phoebe. "You three ar the fools who humiliated me way back! Its been four years since then, but it's like it was yesterday to me! I never forget an humiliation... and I don't forget the faces of those who pulled my leg, either!"

"Really? We have forgotten all about it, instead!" Misty shot back, that guy's behaviour already getting on her nerves. "If you have something against us, why don't you say it to our faces, instead of talking in circles?"

The uniform-wearing boy chuckled and began taking his helmet off. "Heheheee... yeah, I guess what I just said means very little to you... then, allow me to refresh your memory! Let's see if you can recognize me!"

As Dawn blinked in puzzlement and Phoebe wrinkled her nose, the boy - who seemed to be only a little older than Ash - took off his helmet, revealing a smirking young face framed by shoulder-long, faded blue hair, and slanted eyes giving him even more of a snobbish appearence. Immediately, Pikachu raised his ears and squeaked in surprise... and Ash, MIsty and Brock widened their eyes a second later!

"Hold... hold on a sec!" the flabbergasted Ash exclaimed. "I can't believe this! You are... you are..."

The blue-haired boy grinned maliciously as the trio looked at him in shock, and took another step forward...

"Er... good question, who are you?" Ash asked dumbly, completely spoiling all dramatic tension!

The blue-haired guy stopped cold and his jaw dropped in awkwardness, as Misty, Dawn and Phoebe facefaulted, and a huge sweatdrop poured down the back of Brock and Gary's heads! Even the normally stoic J looked somewhat puzzled...

"W-what?" the Team Vicious boy asked. "What do you mean you don't remember me?"

"I mean I don't remember you, that's what!" Ash answered naively. "I mean, so much time went by since we met... if we even met at all, 'cause I do think there's something familiar about you..."

Pikachu stood up and started squeaking in exasperation. Sure, Ash was his best friend and trainer, but he could be really dense at times! "_Pika pi! Pika chu, pika pika... chuuu! Pikachu!_" he exclaimed, frantically moving his arms towards the blue-haired guy.

"Er... what?" Ash asked incredulously. "Pikachu, are you saying that this guy is..."

"Of course he is, Ash, you doofus!" Misty exclaimed, standing up and playfully smacking Ash upside the head. "He's the scoundrel who abandoned Charmander, don't you remember? The one we met just after Brock joined us!"

"WHAT? IS... is that really you?" Ash exclaimed as he pointed his finger at the Team Vicious agent, who chuckled lowly, glad to have been recognized. "Damien? That two-bit trainer who got a lesson from his Charmander and my Pikachu?"

"Yeah, that's me! Surprised to see me, Ash Ketchum?" Damien mocked him. "Frankly, I thought you'd recognize me earlier, but apparently, you have little use for your brain! And you have no idea how much I've changed since we met!"

"Really?" Brock asked rhetorically. While still calm, he looked quite angry and indignant, which was something Ash was not used to see on his rational friend's face. "You claim you're different from last time? I still see an immature and insensitive brat who always takes the easy way out to become a trainer. So tell me, how have you changed?"

"Hah! I knew you couldn't understand!" Damien shot back. "Back when I was a trainer, I had to waste my time having my Pokemon practice every day, and keep track of too many things... and all this running around challenging Gyms and collecting Badges! Bah, I have better things to do! I did a smart thing joining our boss... he gave me powerful Pokemon I could never have any other way! I have become a first-class trainer without even breaking a sweat!"

Damien's rant visibly disgusted Ash, who almost turned his head the other way. "Tch... yeah, such a great hero you are... you skipped all the hard work!" he commented. "I guess you fell very proud of yourself, don't you?"

"And I don't remember your Pokemon doing much against my Ghosts, anyway..." Phoebe snarked with a pleasant smile on her tanned face. "They couldn't even raise a finger to them..."

This actually managed to take Damien's arrogant smile away for a second. "Tch... yeah, maybe so, but it won't happen a second time! I know your tricks, girl, and I've got reinforces to back me up! So... we're going to give your stupid Ghosts a run for their money!"

"Not so fast, dude!" Misty exclaimed, holding a pair of Pokeballs. "Don't forget we're here as well! And we're no slouches, though we aren't in miss Phoebe's league!"

"Exactly!" Dawn continued. "So don't underestimate us, that would be a great mistake!"

"Hmmm... but how interesting!" J commented haughtily. "Looks like your friends and my men have decided to settle thngs their own way. Well, who am I to intrude? Therefore, I leave you to your little Pokemon battle, while I go for the big prize."

That said, the huntress pressed a button on the device on her left wrist... and a huge cloud of white smoke shot out from it, catching everyone off guard! J took advantage of the confusion to run away, right into another passage, whieAh futilely tried to wave the smoke away!

"Oh no, she's getting away... once again!" Dawn exclaimed.

Brock was quick to act, before J could put too much distance between her and them. "Quick, Crobat! Use your Whirlwind to blow the smoke away!"

"_Crobat!_" the giant bat answered as he began furiously beating his wings, raising a powerful wind that dispersed the cloud of smoke in a few instants... but still, J had bought herself enough time to escape and further penetrate into the inner chambers of the volcano.

"Darn... Ash, come with me!" Phoebe exclaimed. "We'll chase down that woman before she can awaken Moltres!"

"_Pikachu!_" Pikachu agreed, speaking for his trainer as well. Ash nodded as well, then turned to his friends to see if they were going to be alright.

"Don't you worry, Ashy-boy! We're staying here to give these losers a good bit of schooling!" Gary said confidently. "You try not to get beaten, okay? That would be quite sad, in front of an Elite Four..."

"Ugh... thanks, Gary, I could do without your sarcasm, you know..." Ash murmured. "Are you sure you can handle this, guys?"

"No worries, Ash, we've got this in the bag!" Misty answered as she winked at him. One of the Team Vicious goons in front of her had let out a Linoone, while Damien, sporting another of his smirks, had sent out an Hypno. "Okay, I'll take care of these two myself! Misty calls... Gyarados and Starmie!"

"Pachirisu! Buneary! It's time to fight!" Dawn exclaimed. The electric squirrel and the bunny popped out to face a Raticate and a Dunsparce.

Gary nodded and spun a Pokeball on his fingertip. "Okay then... guess it's my turn now! Then, I choose... Arcanine and Kingler! Come on!" he exclaimed, calling two of his strongest Pokemon to face a Kirlia and a Pelipper.

"And I'm the last one." Brock commented. Crobat was already out of his Pokeball, ready to face his opponent's Purugly. "Okay, then... Steelix! Give Crobat a hand!"

The huge steel serpent popped up in front of Brock and stood on guard, ready to face his opponent's Magneton.

"Heh, I see you've been doing your homework..." Damien exclaimed mockingly. "But that still won't save you! Dunno if you've noticed, but we are more numerous! You stand no chance!"

Gary shrugged nonchalantly. "If you think numbers are all that matters in a Pokemon battle, I wonder how you made it this far..." he commented. "But since you like to gloat, why don't you show me what you can do?"

"Ash, you and miss Phoebe go stop that J woman! We'll catch up with you later!" Misty said to her crush. "And make sure you give her the what-for!"

After hesitating for just a second, Ash nodded and followed Pikachu, Phoebe and Rotom in the corridor through which J had escaped. "Okay, guys! Good luck, and be careful!" he told his friends, before Phoebe motioned for him to hurry up. Soon, th four of them had ran after J, leaving their friends to deal with Damien and the other Team Vicious members.

"Hmmm... a two-on-one, huh?" the redheaded Water Pokemon expert commented cheekily. "Doesn't sound like a fair fight to me... these jerks have no chances!"

"I agree, our Pokemon will walk all over them!" Dawn agreed. "No need to worry!"

Damien chuckled nastily at that. "Hehehee... getting a little cocky, aren't we? Team Vicious is the most powerful Pokemon organization ever to exist! Soon, Team Rocke, Team Aqua, Team Magma and even Team Galactic will be forgotten! You picked the wrong opponent, kids!"

"Team Vicious?" an unimpressed Gary commented. "You criminal gangs always have the strangest ideas for your names... but I don't really care! You're going down! Arcanine, Kingler, stand ready!"

The firey canine and the gigantic crab nodded, as they and all the other Pokemon stood ready for the fight...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: The dice has been cast now. Ash and Phoebe are about to get into a difficult battle with the dreaded Hunter J as Misty and the others face Damien and the rest of Team Vicious, with the legendary Moltres on the line! And will Jessie, James and Meowth manage not to become crisps by the time all is said and done? Once again, for all answers, I ask you to wait for the next chapter, which I hope to publish as soon as possible! I have a few stories to catch up on, but I will also keep working on this one... so keep your fingers crossed! **


	15. Battles Of Ice And Fire

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Welcome back, everybody! This story has reached the 15th chapter, and now two teams are about to face a few very important battles! On one hand, Ash and his team are facing Hunter J and Team Vicious inthe bowels of Mt. Ember, with Moltres on the line... and on the other, we'll have Zoey, Candice and Maylene getting into trouble on their own while they try to climb their way up Mt. Coronet! Someone is out there, keeping an eye on our "lovely angels" trio...**

**If you think this will be a recipe for a nice battle, you're absolutely right! In fact, this chapter will mark the start of a few chapter full of action, which hopefully will satisfy the Pokemon fans reading! But don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the AAML angle, and our favourite Pokemon couple will slowly but surely get closer with time! I just wanted to develop it at a good pace, but rest assured you'll start seeing something soon!**

**That said, I think I've said everything I needed. Hope you like what you'll be reading now, and see you soon!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 15 - Battles of Ice and Fire**

"Hmm... so that's how it is, huh? That's a lot more interesting than I first thought..." Giovanni murmured to himself, stroking his white Persian's fur like the villain in a James Bond movie. The Team Rocket don was sitting at his desk, a last-generation laptop in front of him and watching the images on the flat screen... which were, in fact, the images caught by the bug Domino had planted on Ash. Thanks to this, he had managed to get a good idea of what was going on in Sevii Islands, without even moving from his seat!

"Domino really has done a good job. I will have to reward her, once she's back. But for now, let's just sit back and enjoy the show..." Giovanni said. "With this, I'll be able to think more carefully about my plan..."

**oooooooooo**

Mt. Coronet, an harsh place with a summit almost perpetually covered in snow and ice, known for being the object of countless legends, especially the ones regarding the creation of the world, and the three Legendary Pokemon representing the universe's main principles - Dialga of Time, Palkia of Space, and the unfathomable Giratina of Antimatter.

That was the dangerous, unexplored place Zoey, Candice and Maylene were headed to: the girls had just left the paved road and were walking in a forest of snow-covered firs and impressive scenarios - places that seemed to be enveloped into eternal ice. The temperature had fallen considerably since the girls had left the small chalet they had spent the night in... to the point where Maylene had been forced to leave her dislike of footwear aside and put a pair of snowshoes on!

"Okay, girls, I think we're getting closer..." Zoey commented, using a hand to shield her face from the wind as she looked in front of herself. "That should be the place where the avalanche started... now that I see it, I can believe that all the more!"

"Indeed... be careful, girls, I'm afraid the snow might still be unstable, around here..." Candice warned. "We don't wanna cause another slide..."

"Al... alright!" Maylene gulped, getting some safety distance from the place from which the body of snow had detached itself. A hole of considerable size was in the mountain's snowy side, and a few nearby trees had literally been uprooted by the slide's overwhelming force, creating a really shocking sight. The fact that the avalanche had left quite a bit of destruction in its wake didn't help either, and the girls couldn't suppress a fearful shiver as they walked around the large hole...

"It's even worse than I thought..." Zoey commented, trying not to look down. She was about to add something, but a dangerous-sounding noise of cracked branches and leaves forced her to turn that way! There were a few roars of rage... and soon after, a trio of Abomasnow leapt out of the fir forest with maddened screams, running towards the three girls with clear aggressive intents!

"_SNOOOOOW!_" the head Abomasnow roared. raising his powerful arms! His two companions did the same as they charged menacingly towards Zoey and her friends... but the girls, after a brief moment of shock, grabbed their Pokeballs to defend themselves!

"A... a bunch of Abomasnow? What's the meaning of this?" Candice exclaimed, surprised by the normally peaceable Pokemon's aggressive behaviour.

"I'm afraid these Pokemon have been made nervous by what happened lately..." Zoey replied. "We have to face them, we don't have much of a choice..."

"Okay!" Maylene answered as she let out one of her Pokemon. "Come on, Lucario! WE need your help!"

Candice nodded before letting one of her fighters out. "Glaceon, it's your turn now!"

"Ninetales! It's time to fight!" Zoey exclaimed, surprising her two friends, who didn't know she had a Pokemon like that. Before the three girls, standing between them and the Abomasnow, three fierce-looking Pokemon appeared: a small humanoid jackal with blue and black fur, and pointed spikes on his hands and chest; a fox-like Pokemon with short white-azure fur, large blue fringes on her forehead and long pointed ears; and a large nine-tailed fox, whose soft and fluffy white fur had flames running all over it!

"A Ninetales? Didn't know you had one, Zoey..." Maylene said, looking at the nine-tailed fox in admiration as it prepared to fight.

The red-haired coordinator nodded with a small smile. "Yeah... I didn't tell you, but I caught this Pokemon a little while ago; I noticed my team lacked a good Fire-type Pokemon... and this Ninetales, who was just a Vulpix back then, solved this problem. But now, let's take care of those Abomasnow!" she exclaimed. The three Grass/Ice Pokemon had begun backing away, knowing all too well how dangerous the kitsune Pokemon's attacks would be for them...

"If it's possible, I'd rather knock them out without hurting them too much... think we can do this, girls?" Candice asked. Maylene and Zoey nodded in assent, and the young martial artist began the assault, just as the biggest Abomasnow stepped forward to attack Ninetales with an Ice Shard!

"Let's go, then! Lucario, use Flash Cannon!" the pink-haired martial artist exclaimed. The small Steel / Fighting Pokemon concentrated for a little while, creating a shining sphere of energy in his hands and shooting it towards the ground! The snow under the biggest Abomasnow's feet was smashed apart, and the large Pokemon sank in the snow, up to his waist, with a surprised grunt.

"Nicely done, Maylene!" Zoey commented. "Now... Ninetales, stop them with Confuse Ray!"

"Glaceon, use Water Pulse!" Candice exclaimed.

Before the Abomasnow could get their act together, Ninetales affixed one of them with a penetrating glare, letting out a low growl. Her eyes lit up with a strange, otherworldly glow... and the Abomasnow froze in place, while Glaceon shot a large water sphere against her opponent, striking him head-on and stunning him for a while! The attacks worked just as expected, and the two smaller Abomasnow began swaying from side to side, confused. The small group of exploreres had managed to get some advantage on their attackers, and they wisely chose to use it to get away!

"Okay, girls, let's take advantage of this to get away from here!" Candice said. The ice and wood behemoths were still trying to gather themselves, and the two who had been confused were helplessly flailing around, bumping into each other. The girls and their Pokemon had no problem escaping, and in a short time, the team reached a small path sneaking into the evergreen forest, leaving the clearing and the Abomasnow's enraged roars behind them!

"Phew... girls, I have to confess I was afraid for a second there! Thanks, Lucario..." Maylene commented as she patted her top Pokemon on the head. Lucario kept his noble countenance, and nodded in acknowledgement. "I have this uneasy feeling we're nearing the completion of the puzzle..."

"Yeah, me too..." Zoey affirmed, gently stroking her Ninetales' head. "Just like Candice said, Abomasnow are usually kind and peaceful, and don't attack humans. If those three were so nervous... that's probably because of the avalanche, and the cause of it might not be that far away!"

Candice nodded as the girls resumed their journey, this time keeping their Pokemon at their sides for safety. "It's true... keep your eyes peeled, everyone, if that's true, then those Abomasnow won't be the only wild Pokemon we'll meet along the way..."

"Okay!" Zoey and Maylene answered, and all of their Pokemon nodded as well, unaware that they were being watched from a safe distance! A Noctowl, flying several dozens of feet above the snow-covered forest, was watching them with his unerring eyes and, after swiftly maneuvering in mid-air, he flew to one of the nearest snowy peaks, unseen and above suspicion...

**oooooooooo**

"Stop it, J! Don't think you can get away with it!" Ash exclaimed as he ran as fast as he could in the rocky corridor. Sadly, it was so narrow that neither the young boy nor Phoebe could run that fast, and they often had to zigzag among the jagged rocks, with barely enough light to keep themselves from hitting the walls.

"Stay calm, Ash! That woman wants you to lose your cool!" Phoebe advised. "She hasn't become one of the most infamous Pokemon hunters in the world by being stupid... she's got a lot of tricks up her sleeve, and she's just waiting to use one on us!"

"And... what should we do, then?" Ash asked in slight frustration. Their opponent was obviously up to something, even he knew that, but he couldn't just stay there and wait for things to happen!

"Wait, I'll take care of this." Phoebe answered. "Come out, Dusknoir! We need your help!"

The disquieting cyclops Pokemon appeared in front of the Elite Four member, the fake face on its chest briefly distorting in a sardonic grin. "DUSKNOIIIR!" the Ghost-Type Pokemon howled, floating a few inches above ground. Rotom, still floating near Phoebe's head, flashed a couple times to greet his companion and give him a few pointers.

"_Rotom! Rotom!_" the plasma spectre exclaimed, pointing to the end of the corridor. Dusknoir frowned and nodded, signaling to the trainers to follow him. In a few seconds, he guided his trainer and the young aspiring Pokemon Master to the end of the corridor, towards a huge cave, from which an horrific heat could be felt coming, along with a bright, firey red light. It was clear that the two champions and their Pokemon were nearing the core of the volcano...

Dusknoir motioed for the trainers and Rotom to stay back... then, he slowly peekd out of the corridor, and a faint, almost inaudible, sound caused him to raise his head and look up, just in time to see a bright yellow net made of pure energy drop down upon him! Luckily for him, Phoebe was quick to react, and to have her strongest Pokemon react!

"Shadow Claw!" the island girl exclaimed. Dusknoir's arm shot up, and a well-aimed slash of his claws struck the energy net, short-circuiting itand tearing it to pieces that scattered harmlessly around the massive Ghost-type. Ash and Pikachu stood on guard, as sarcastic clapping announced the return of their opponent: J was on the other side of the firey grotto, and she hardly seemed impressed by the fact that her opponents had disarmed her trap.

"Very good... but that's to be expected from an Hoenn Elite Four!" J affirmed. "I was kind of hoping to capture and neutralize you as soon as you came out of that corridor, but I guess it was too obvious a trick for you, right?"

Ash grit his teeth and blamed himself for his lack of prudence: it was lucky Phoebe had warned him, or he would have fallen for that trap alright...

"I don't know what to do with your praise, J!" Phoebe cut the discussion short, facing the evil huntress with Rotom and Dusknoir by her sides. "You, on the other hand... answer my question! What are you going to do with Moltres? Why have you come to disturb his sacred sleep?"

Just to give more emphasis to the Elite Four's question, Ash took out a Pokeball... but once again J hardly seemed worried, and the young trainer did not like how in control of the whole situation she seemed. "Hmph... as I said, a professional never reveals her employer's name." she stated. "And you shouldn't be worried about what I plan to do with Moltres, but what my Pokemon plan to do with you! Come, my faithful Pokemon! Show them what I mean!"

J took four Pokeballs from her belt, one after the other... and once again, Ash noticedthat they weren't normal Pokeballs - they were black all over, with violet lines vertically placed across their surfaces, giving the balls a somewhat sinister look. Now more than ever, Ash had the feeling he had already seen something like that, but his memory was failing him at the moment... And even that criminal group's name, Team Vicious... there was something rather familiar about it...

"_Pika pi!_" Pikachu called to him, pointing to his opponent. Ash shook himself out of his thoughts, just in time to see J throwing her Pokeballs, which snapped open and released clouds of thick purple vapor, that soon after turned in a bunch of familiar yet still unsettling, Pokemon: an Electrode, a Donphan, a Medicham and a Bibarel, each of them sporting an unsettling and cruel look. There was obviously something wrong with those Pokemon!

"Hehehee... so, what do you think? You really think you can hold a candle to my Dark Pokemon? I warn you, they're much stronger than their normal counterparts!" the gray-haired woman said triumphantly. Phoebe, who until then had been watching in wonder as the criminal woman's Pokemon placed themselves in almost too perfect a straight line in front of thei owner, felt a surge of anger rapidly coursing through her. "J! What's this about? What have you done to those poor Pokemon?"

"Me? Nothing, I was just given these Pokemon, telling me I could use them however I wanted to accomplish my mission... and I follow orders! That's what I was paid for, after all." the woman indifferently explained. "But one thing's for sure... my Dark Pokemon are more than a match for your teams!"

"Dark Pokemon..." Ash murmured to himself... and a few seconds after, his eyes widened and his jaw fell as he remembered just what was it that bugged him so much, with so many hints cropping up in such a short time. "Of course! Now I know! They were... the Pokemon used by the Iron Masked Marauder after being brainwashed! So he's the one you're working for now!"

"The Iron Masked Marauder?" Phoebe asked, having heard that name for the first time.

"Yes, miss Phoebe... a very nasty person I, Misty and Brock met some three years ago. He wanted to get his hands on Celebi, a legendary Pokemon... by using his Dark Pokemon, which he created thanks to a new kind of Pokeball he had worked up. So he's the one behind all this mess! Isn't he, J?" Ash answered, once again glaring at an indifferent opponent.

The woman chuckled, which Ash took as an affirmative. "Well, even if it was, it hardly matters at the moment. Come, my Dark Pokemon! Take out those intruders!"

"Not so fast!" Ash answered. "Go, Bayleef, I choose you! Gotta Catch 'Em All!"

Bayleef appeared in a flash of light in front of Ash... and soon after, much to the young trainer's surprise, she started nuzzling affectionately upon him, like she always did even back when she was a Chikorita! Ash chuckled in embarassment, and Phoebe sweatdropped...

"Hahahaaa! Hey, take it easy, Bayleef! I'm not a chocolate cookie, you know! Heheheee..." the young champion laughed. "I... really appreciated that, Bayleef, but at the moment I kinda need a hand... could you help me and Pikachu against those guys, please?"

"_Bayleef?_" the Grass-type Pokemon asked as she glared at the approaching enemy. J's Dark Electrode seemed to have picked Bayleef as his opponent, and was now rolling towards her, grinning maliciously. Immediately, Bayleef detached from her trainer and placed herself in front of him, determined to defend him to the end! Pikachu nodded and stood on guard himself, causing Bayleef to sigh inwardly at the idea that, once again, she would have to share Ash's attention with the ever-present electric mouse...

"Thanks, Bayleef!" Ash answered. "Pikachu, you can take care of that Medicham! Be careful, his attacks are nothing to sneeze at!"

"_Pika!_" the electric mouse answered. Dark Medicham had already struck a meditating pose in front of him, and Dark Bibarel and Dark Donphan were advancing towards Phoebe's Rotom and Dusknoir...

"Both of you! Rollout!" J ordered her Donphan and Bibarel. "Electrode, use Thunder Wave... and you, Medicham, attack that Pikachu with Fire Punch!"

The Ground-type elephant and the Water-type beaver both rolled into a ball and threw themselves at Rotom and Dusknoir, who reacted just in time to avoid getting hit! The plasma ghost used a Thundershock attack to stop Bibarel in his track and knock him down, while Dusknoir, as soon as Phoebe commanded him to, unleashed an Ice Punch attack on Donphan, intercepting him with a fist coated in white freezing energy. Both Pokemon were knocked down, but they stood up almost immediately and got ready to attack again, which caused quite a bit of surprise from Phoebe.

"They took a super-effective hit, and they're standing up already?" Phoebe asked herself. "Now more than ever I'm sure there's something wrong with those Pokemon..."

Ash and his Pokemon were meanwhile trying to keep Electrode and Medicham at bay... which was proving to be quite a bit harder than they thought! The Pokeball-like Pokemon had unleashed a powerful Thunder Wave that Bayleef had just barely managed to avoid, getting away from its path and countering with a volley of Razor Leaf attacks... that bounced harmlessly on the Electrode's metallic shell. Pikachu himself had just dodged a dangerous Fire Punch attack from Medicham, and was trying to fight back.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" Ash hastily ordered. After squeaking in assent, theelectric mouse spun on himself and threw himself at his opponent, whacking him upside the head with his now steel-hard tail! Medicham was hit and reeled back, giving Pikachu a small reprieve... but the Psychic / Fighting Pokemon stood up immediately and resumed his fight pose, without showing neither pain nor fatigue.

"As you can plainly see... my upgraded Pokemon are more resistant than any other trained Pokemon." J explained. "I'm curious to see if you can keep up with them."

"_Pika pika... CHUUUUU!_" Pikachu decided to answer in a way that required no translation - he charged up for just a second, and unleashed a mighty Thunderbolt attack on Medicham, who quickly raised his guard and blocked the worst of it. Electrode, on the other hand, shot out a quick and accurate Swift attack, forcing Bayleef to brave the hit. Then, much to Ash and his Pokemon's surprise, the giant Pokeball-like creature began floating weightlessly in the air, never once ceasing to grin.

"Well? I guess you're surprised... but Electrodes can learn the Magnet Rise attack, which allows them to detach from the ground and become immune to Ground-type attacks, among other things! Now, Electrode... use a Thunderbolt yourself!" J explained with clear satisfaction.

The spherical Pokemon flashed twice, then shot a powerful electrical discharge towards Bayleef, hitting her head-on and causing her to briefly cry out in pain. Luckily, she was back on her feet a second later, and retaliated efficiently.

"Alright, then, Bayleef! Use Sweet Scent to hold that Electrode!" Ash exclaimed. Bayleef dodged her opponwnt's next attack, then concentrated just for a second, emanating a sweet, penetrating perfume that entered the opponent's nostrils, stunning him for just a second and giving the cute animal a chance to counterattack!

"Great! And now... keep up with a Body Slam attack!" Ash continued. Bayleef nodded in assent and flung herself with all of her strength against Electrode... but the inorganic Pokemon managed to snap out of his funk and dodged the blow!

Ash frowned as he saw Pikachu attacking Medicham with a Volt Tackle, only to be stopped by a quick and deadly Karate Chop. Luckily, the small yellow rodent manged to roll with the blow and landed nimbly on the rocky ground, before getting up. J's Pokemon were proving to be tougher than what their appearence might have suggested, and even Phoebe was quite amazed at their stamina.

"Bibarel! Hit that little pixie with Bubblebeam!" J exclaimed. "And you, Donphan... use Earthquake against that Dusknoir!"

The beaver Pokemon opened his mouth wide and shot a volley of bubbles against Rotom, who tried to shield himself... but some of the bubbles slipped through, bursting on his luminous body and setting off a volley of orange sparks! Then, Domphan lifted his front paws and slammed them both on the ground, causing a shockwave that hit Dusknoir and staggered him... but luckily, the cyclops ghost managed to pick himself up soon and shook his head in determination. Rotom had been hit a little more seriously, and only barely managed to avoid a Water Gun attack Bibarel followed up with.

"Tch... alright, then, you buffoon, you're asking for it!" Phoebe growled, her patience at an end. ""Rotom! Dusknoir! The kiddie gloves are off! Rotom, hit with Ominous Wind! And you, Dusknoir... strike Donphan with Will-o-Wisp!"

"_Rotom!_" the plasma ghost exclaimed. He floated upwards, a strange purple aura surrounding his body... then, before Bibarel could attack again, he shot forth a massive burst of violet energy that completely enveloped the beaver, before slamming him against the wall and leaving him stunned for a few seconds! Rotom's eyes went wide and shone a green light, and Phoebe smiled to herself as she recognized Ominous Wind's secondary effect of powering up her Pokemon... and at the same time, Dusknoir opened his huge hands and created a pair of blue flames in his palms, before shooting them at Donphan, hitting him on the side! The Ground-type elephant bellowed in rage and pain as a black mark appeared on his side...

"Ominous Wind has a small chance of raising all of the characteristics of the user, just like Ancient Power..." Phoebe explained, staring straight at J's eyes. The huntress didn't seem to be so self-assured now. "And I'm afraid that, no matter how strong your Pokemon are, they won't be that strong after taking a Will-o-Wisp!"

"Hmph..." the grey-haired woman answered. "Don't think this will be enough to stop my Pokemon..."

"_Come on, just a little more... I just need to hold these fools for a few minutes..._" the huntress thought to herself, as Bibarel and Donphan picked themselves up. Pikachu had just managed to hit Medicham with a Slam attack, slapping him with his tail and making up for the earlier disadvantage, as Bayleef unleashed a flurry of Razor Leaves on Electrode! The orb Pokemon raised a Barrier in front of himself, trying to think of a way around that...

**oooooooooo**

In the meantime, the battle between Ash's friends and the members of Team Vicious was entering its climax, and the multitude of special effects and colourful lights gave a clear idea of how fierce the combat was! Team Vicious' Purugly flung himself at Brock's Crobat, who slapped him in the face with a Wing Attack and followed up with a fierce Cross Poison attack. The fat cat hissed ferociously and staggered back, as Crobat got ready for a new attack.

"These guys are pushovers!" Gary commented with a smirk, as he saw his Arcanine dropping an opponent's Kirlia with a well-placed Body Slam, and his Kingler squeezing a Pelipper in his main claw. "We're stomping them and not even paying attention!"

Dawn's Pachirisu got in front of his opponent, a Raticate, and after striking a cute pose, he raised his tail in the air and used a Cute Charm attack, throwing a bunch of pink heart against the giant rat and hitting him in the face. Raticate squeaked in irritation and stumbled back... which allowed the white squirrel to follow up with a Spark attack, his body wrapped in a mighty electric aura with which he shocked his opponent!

"Well done, Pachirisu!" Dawn cheered, as her Buneary struck a Dunsparce with an Hi Jump Kick, fainting the strange cave-dwelling Pokemon. "But let's not cheer too quickly, at least not until we've taken out the last one of them!"

"No worries, Dawn! We're quite close to that!" Misty exclaimed. The redhead's Starmie had just used Rapid Spin to knock away a persistant Linoone, while Damien's Hypno seemed to be faring a little bit better... although Misty's Gyarados was still clearly superior to him!

"Ugh... darn!" the blue-haired bully cursed, seeing how a Psychic attack hadn't done much to the gigantic sea serpent. "You don't think it ends like that, do you? Hypno! Get back at him with a Thunder Punch!"

"Careful, Gyarados! Dodge that!" Misty tried to warn her Pokemon, but Damien's Hypno was faster than she expected and hit Gyarados with his fist coated in an electric aura, sending hundreds of volts in his massive body! The sea serpent, who was prticularly susceptible to this kind of attacks, roared in pain and fell, his body still twitching a little... and Misty held her breath, hoping that her Pokemon could manage to get up. Luckily, Gyarados grit his teeth, bore the pain and stood tall again, his eyes almost flashing in rage! Suddenly intimidated by the opponent's sheer size, Damien's Hypno paced backwards a little, and Damien himself paled in fear, asking himself how was it possible that an Electric-type attack hadn't immediately dropped Gyarados...

Misty almost seemed to read his mind, as she immediately turned to him and stared sternly at him. "I'm afraid you forgot about Gyarados' special ability. His size puts fear in his opponents who cannot strike him with their full power. And Hypnos aren't known to be physical attackers anyway..." she explained. Gyarados, however, decided that further elaboration was necessary and swung his massive tail around, coating it in a roaring wave-like mass of water!

"Gyarados! Aqua Tail!" Misty exclaimed. The blow connected, sending Hypno flying and slamming him on the wall before letting him fall limp and unconscious! Damien stood there in wide-eyed wonder, in disbelief that his Pokemon could be taken out that easily. "What... what's this about?" he mouthed. "My Hypno's Thunder Punch... should have done a number on your Gyarados! How can this be... how did you defeat me, you scrawny brat?"

"Pity. Had you trained your Hypno yourself, instead of just having him handed to you by your bosses, you might have known him better and you might have beaten me. But I guess you wanted to skip the 'boring part' of training your Pokemon and estabilishing a bond with them." the redhead exclaimed, as she approached her Gyarados and caressed him on the side. "Well, as you can plainly see... I and my Gyarados don't have this problem!"

Gritting his teeth in rage, Damien turned around... and was disappointed to see that most of his companions had already been beaten, and the remaining ones weren't doing well. Only a Skarmory was still up and about, facing Brock's Steelix and managing to put a small dent in his armor with a Steel Wing attack, but the steel serpent was still able to fight back, and hit before Skarmory could try again!

"Steelix! Knock Skarmory out with Rock Slide!" the dark-skinned boy exclaimed. Steelix grunted in response and slammed his massive tail on the ground, causing rocks to rain down on Skarmory and knock him out of the air! The steel raptor shrieked helplessly and lay down on the ground, his eyes turning into spirals... which ended the fight once and for all, and made Damien and his companions realize that they were now defenceless!

"Guess the battle is over now." Gary said. "For all your boasting, you sure didn't put up much of a fight."

Damien stepped back, almost ending up slamming his back on the stone wall behind him. "Ugh... you... you don't think you've won, right?" he murmured, gritting his teeth. "While you were wasting your time with us... your friends were up against Miss J, and she's a whole other can of worms compared to us! They won't win that easily!"

"I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with that!" Dawn shot back after congratulating Pachirisu and Buneary over their victories. "Ash alredy managed to defeat J in the past, and one of Hoenn's Elite Four is with him now! So... I kinda think it's your boss that should be worried!"

"We'll... see about that soon!" another Team Vicious member tried to answer, but despite the mask on his face distorting his voice, it was clear that he was only putting up a front. In fact, none of Ash's friends really cared about him, as they recalled their Pokemon.

"Okay, these guys are accounted for..." Brock stated. "Now, we just have to hope Ash and Phoebe have fared just as well..."

**oooooooooo**

Zoey wasn't the kind of person who complained a lot, but she had to admit that walking on a snowy road extendind for what looked like miles in a deep, dark forest wasn't exactly her favourite activity, and the fact that they had found nothing yet was testing her patience. Even Candice and Maylene were beginning to feel the fatigue from walking for so long, in such freezing temperatures and with their backpacks on... and in the end, the black-haired Gym Leader let out a sigh of relief as she stopped and raised her hand.

"Candice, what's up?" Zoey asked, turning to her friend. "Are you sure you're feeling well?"

Even Maylene was quickly at Candice's side to see if she was doing alright. "If you're cold, we'd better try and find a place to rest, and then stop there..." she started saying, but Candice smiled in reassurance and set her backpack on the ground, then she sat under the branches of a snow-covered pine tree. The feeling of taking such an heavy weight off was simply marvelous...

"Don't... worry, girls, I was just a little tired, is all!" Candice reassured her friends. "I just needed to stop and catch my breath... what do you say we stop here and resta little?"

"In fact, we've been walking since sunrise..." Zoey stated. "And it's almost midday anyway, so we'd better eat something. You're right, Candice, after all a little rest won't hurt! You okay with that, Maylene?"

Maylene nodded, and both she and Zoey dropped their backpacks and sat beside Candice in the shallow snow. The place had a calm, soothing feeling to it, as if time itself was frozen, and only the whispering of the wind, and the sounds of a few wild Pokemon roaming around, broke the silence from time to time.

"Phew... still, it's a bummer that we've been walking for so long, and we still are nowhere closer..." Maylene sighed, moving her aching knees. "Maybe we ought to be looking elsewhere?"

"Don't think so..." Zoey answered, her back laid on the tree trunk behind her. "This was the only real lead we had, and that mass of snow began sliding from here... so, I don't think the guilty party could get too far away. And even if they did, they couldn't have done so without leaving at least some tracks behind... so, we have to keep searching around here. Something will turn up, I'm sure of it."

"Sadly, we don't have much time to search... as soon as night falls, we'll haveto get back to the inn as soon as we can. It would be too risky to stay out..." Candice rightly said. "If only we knew where to look..."

A sudden noise alerted the young Gym Leader and her friends that someone was nearby, and Candice immediately shut up and listened, her eyes glued to the snow-covered bushes on the trio's right. Zoey and Maylene did the same, feeling the tension rise when another noise came from the branches on the other side...

"What's going on? What's that?" the young martial artist said in a whisper.

Zoey frowned as she looked at a vaguely distinguishable shape moving among the vegetation, causing some snow to fall. "Dunno, Maylene, but I kinda get the feeling we're drawing close..." she said as she grabbed a Pokeball. More ominous sounds were heard around them, reinforcing their fear that they had fallen into a trap...

"I fear so as well... somebody decided to keep us company here!" Candice said. Their attackers were approaching more and more, and the voices were heard even more clearly... together with the sound of Pokeballs opening and Pokemon coming out!

Zoey, Maylene and Candice stood wating for a while... then, before the enemy could move, they each sent out one of their Pokemon: the red-headed coordinator let out her Gastrodon, a giant sea slug with zigzagging horns on the sides of her head and three black eyes, one of which was in the center of her forehead. Pink in colour, which identified her as a West Sea specimen, her head and back were brown, with golden streaks along her soft body.

Candice's Pokemon was a beautiful, frail-looking Ghost Pokemon whose body was somewhat reminescent of a white kimono, a red band on her waist and overlarge sleeves. Horn-like glass spurs emerged from her head, and some violet skin was visible through a few holes in her incorporeal dress, along with a pair of blue eyes with yellow pupils. She was obviously a Froslass, a Ghost / Ice Pokemon noted for being a rare Snorunt evolution, and reminescent of the Japanese Yuki-Onna legend.

Finally, Maylene had sent out her mighty Machoke, who was now flexig his arms and showing his intimidating muscles. For a moment, their attackers seemed to be thinking twice before tangling with such strong opponents... but not a second later, the disquieting sounds continued, and a threatening, while somewhat muffled, voice called out to them.

"Whoever you are, go away from here at once!" a man wearing a black uniform with a reversed R drawn upon it, and a gas mask on his face said as he emerged from the snowy woods, a spiky, electricity-charged Jolteon at his side. Soon after, another man and a woman appeared in front of Maylene and Candice, wearing the same uniform and gas mask, and with some dangerous-looking Pokemon at their sides: the second man had let out a Probopass, an awkward-looking creature looking like an head sculpted in blue stone, with an enormous red nose, a thick moustache, and an hat-like magnet on top of his strange body.

The woman, on the other hand, had a Grumpig with her: a strange Psychic-type Pokemon similar to a bipedal, purple-and-black pig, a spiralling tail and overlarge ears, with two black pearls on his forehead. They were surrounding the girls, not allowing them to push through...

"Hey! Who do you happen to be?" Candice exclaimed, instantly recognizing them as members of another criminal cartel, though she had no idea what the symbol stood for...

The shady guys got closer, and the three friends stepped backwards, almost ending up back to back. "It does not matter who we are." one of the masked villains said. "Wht does matter is, you kids are meddling in things that don't concern you. This is adult business, so... scram and go back home, unless you wanna get hurt!"

"This DOES concern us, actually." Candice shot back. "From what we could see, a huge mass of snow detached from here and fell on Snowpoint City... my hometown! Three people died under the ruins, and there are still people the police can't find... if it was you and your team to do that, you'll have to answer to me as Snowpoint City's Gym Leader!"

"Yeah, to us too!" Maylene shot back, striking her Machoke's own fight pose. "We are Candice's best friends, and we aren't going to just let you wreck her city!"

The man with the Jolteon laughed heartily. "Hahahaaa... my, my, aren't you a little toughie? Maybe you need to be shown just who's in charge here... Jolteon, use Charge Beam! Take out that ugly slug!"

Zoey's wary expression turned to one of puzzlement as Jolteon, after letting out a keening sound, shot a crackling golden laser towards her Gastrodon, who did not even bother trying to dodge - and she was far too slow to do so anyway. However, the attack didn't even faze the giant slug, and the electricity just rolled off Gastrodon's body like water on a duck's feathers!

"Wh... WHAT?" the man exclaimed as his Jolteon ceased the attack and shook his head. "My... Electric Pokemon... didn't even faze that Water-type?"

"Er..." Zoey murmured. She was so surprised that she couldn't believe that guy had made such a silly mistake. "Actually, Gastrodon is a Water / Ground type. Don't tell me you didn't know this!"

"Actually, no..." the masked crook answered. There was not much Zoey could do if not put her hand to her face in disappointment.

"I can't believe it... is this guy really that daft?" Candice asked. Her Froslass shrugged and shook her head, as Maylene's Machoke crossed his arms on his chest in disapproval. "Well, we aren't going to cut such a poor showing! Froslass, hit that Grumpig with a Blizzard attack!"

"Let's show them what we've got, Machoke!" Maylene said, striking a pose. "Use Cross Chop on that Probopass!"

"Gastrodon, use Earth Power!" Zoey called to her Pokemon.

The snowy phantom raised her arms and summoned a chilling wind around herself, as Machoke advanced towards Probopass to hit him with his strongest attack, and Gastrodon, after nodding once, closed her three small eyes and concentrated, a few shockwaves rising from the ground around her! Intimidated by this unexpected display of strength, the three shady individuals stepped backwards, as their Pokemon tried to stand their ground...

**oooooooooo**

"Rotom, finish him off with Thunderbolt! Dusknoir... Shadow Claw again!"

Keeping up admirably with two Pokemon at once, Phoebe gave her next orders... and Bibarel's Water Gun attack was dissipated by a lethally accurate electrical bolt, discharged from the Ghost / Electric type's diminutive body... and while the cave was briefly illuminated, the unprepared beaver was hit by the powerful attack, shrieked in pain and finally slumped helplessly on the ground. Dusknoir, in the meanwhile, flew towards Donphan and slashed him with his mighty claws, enveloped in an innatural black-purple flame than went through the Ground Pokemon's formidable natural armor! Donphan bellowed as he was lifted clean off the ground and sent hurtling to the wall behind him, breaking a few rocks with his weight! The elephant-like Pokemon crumpled to the ground and remained there, as Dusknoir narrowed his single eye, as if he was silently celebrating his victory. "_Duuuusknoir..._"

Ash and his Pokemon were doing a good job themselves - Electrode's blinding speed and electric attacks were proving to be of little use against Bayleef's stamina and defensive skills, as the Leaf Pokemon struck him with powerful Razor Leaves and similar attacks... and Pikachu, thanks to his quick leg work, and the tricks he had learned during his and Ash's journey, was giving Medicham a run for his money! The Psychic / Fighting tried a Bric Break attack, but Ash and Pikachu countered with an Agility move that allowed the yellow mouse to avoid the hand chop... then, after gaining some speed, Pikachu threw himself at his opponent, surrounded in a crackling electric aura!

"Great, Pikachu! Hit him with Volt Tackle! And you, Bayleef... use Energy Ball and end this battle!" the young trained ordered. Pikaachu squeaked in assent, sped up a little more and struck Medicham head-on, administering a mighty shock to him and causing his face to comically scrunch in pain and surprise before he was sent tothe ground in exhaustion! Bayleef, on the other hand, closed her eyes and concentrated for a few seconds before opening her mouth and shooting a glowing green sphere towards Electrode... and the Pokeball-like Pokemon had no choice but to take the blow, which went through his Barrier and exploded upon him, sending him to the ground under J's cold, merciless glare. The battle was over, with J on the losing side, and both Ash and Phoebe congratulated their Pokemon and turned to their opponent.

"Whatever they were... those powered-up Pokemon weren't really that useful." Ash affirmed, surrendering to the temptation of boasting a little. The two trainers were sure they had the whole thing under control... at least until the undaunted J recalled her Pokemon and smirked in victory!

"I'm afraid I'll have to crush your illusions, then." the cruel huntress said. "You see, even if you have defeated my Pokemon, that hardly matters for me. Don't you think it's a little strange that I chose this, of all places, to fight against you?"

Phoebe frowned, an odd feeling growing inside of her. In fact, it was kind of weird that J had left her minions to fight Ash's friends... while she ran away in another room, but in the heat of the moment, neither she nor Ash had thought much of it. "What? What do you mean?" the Hoenn Elite Four demanded.

"What I mean is..." J answered calmly as she pressed button on her bracelet. "That this is the place where I wanted to fight you. Did you actually think I didn't have a backup plan for catching the Legendary Pokemon dwelling in this volcano? My men, the tea your friends were facing back there, became useless the moment we stopped here to fight."

As if summoned by J's words, an otherworldly red-orange glow erupted from the crater behind her, together with a sinister shriek that caused the walls to shake, and the ceiling was hit by something big and heavy, and crumbled into the crater, transforming into red-hot magma! A small earthquake shook the ground under Ash, Phoebe and J's feet, and the Ghost Pokemon expert immediately felt a gargantuan surge of energy coming from the lava pit.

"I thought that an intense enough battle could have awakened the Fire Titan, Moltres, from his slumber... and it seems that my gambit was right on the money. Winning or losing mattered little to me." J explained. Her huge flying machine could be seen from the hole that had been blown in the room's walls...

"Darn! And we fell or it hook, line and sinker!" Ash exclaimed in frustration as he picked up Pikachu and Bayleef and tried to keep his footing among the quakes. The air had gotten a little more breathable, but now it was heating up again, and the orange glow coming from the pit was getting more and more intense, as if a miniature sun was about to rise from there. J pressed another button on her device, and a small ladder came down from her flying machine, allowing her to get a grab on it.

"Now I've done a good part of the job." she affirmed as the ladder was lifted up again, taking her along. "Now all I have to do is capture Moltres as soon as he takes flight. I have no more business with you, so if you want to burn to ashes, you can stay there. I don't really care."

"She's right..." Phoebe answered, sweating copiously. "If Moltres is rising from there, this place will soon get too hot for us to survive. We have to go away now!"

"Hold on a second, miss Phoebe..." Ash tried to argue, but he too didn't want to stay there much longer. The room was getting to look more and more like a sauna... "We... we need to find a way to stop J from catching that Legendary Bird!"

"Right, and we can't do that if we get turned to crisps here!" the island girl cut the argument short, grabbing Ash's hand and dragging him back through the tunnel they had come out of. "Come with me, let's get back to Misty and the others! I hope they won against those thugs..."

"_Pika!_" Pikachu exclimed in assent, he and Bayleef running through the corridor. Ash wisely decided to do what he was told to and followed Phoebe out of the cavern, with J already at a safe distance from the flames. Huge flames began to surface from Moltres' resting place, and the Legendary Pokemon's mighty shrieks shook the firey cavern once again, echoing ominously even outside the mountain...

**oooooooooo**

The heat soon became difficult to bear, and Misty and her friends felt themselves sweat as a faint red-orange light began invading the tunnels! A low rumbling came from the volcano's belly, like an enraged giant's roar, and the Team Vicious grunts they had been facing quickly turned tail and ran away!

"Ah! What's going on?" Dawn exclaimed, frightend by the ground shifting under the soles of her boots. "Is that an earthquake?"

Brock grit his teeth as he held to a wall, noting it was already hotter than it had been when they had entered. "Ugh... I don't like this one bit! I'm afraid the Pokemon who lives here has awakened, and he's angry about it!" he exclaimed. "I don't know how J awakened it, but it doesn't matter now! We ave to find Ash and Phoebe, and get away from here!"

Luckily, they didn't have to search for their friends, as they soon emerged from the corridor J had taken earlier, Pikachu and Bayleef in tow, much to their friends' relief.

"Ash! Miss Phoebe! Glad to see you're alright..." Misty affirmed. "What about J? What's with this earthquake?"

"Bad news, everyone..." Phoebe explained. "Moltres has awakened because of all the fighting... J brought us here because it was her plan all along to use the sounds of battle to wake him up! This place will soon become a lethal trap! We have to run away from here, and think of our next move! If Moltres isn't kept in check, none of the Sevii Islands will be safe anymore!

"Yeah, but we can't let J catch Moltres either!" Ash answered, as the team started on their way out of the tunnels, who were heating up too quickly for their liking. "If she manages to do this, we're all in deep trouble!"

"Let's think of this when we're out of danger, okay?" was Gary's answer. Bayleef squeaked affirmatively, as the team started running away from that place...

**oooooooooo**

"Aaaargh What's going on now?" Jessie screamed, unsuccessfully trying not to show fear as the sudden quake shook the cavern they were in. James got away from the wall he had been hanging onto with a brief cry of fear, and even Meowth let his fur stand on end, his face pretty much screaming that he was trying his best not to panic. Like the day really needed to get worse...

"Ugh... Jessie, I'm afraid the volcano is erupting!" James exclaimed. "It's gotten quite a bit hotter, don't you think so? We won't be able to stay here anymore, if this keeps up!"

"Then let's make like a tree and leave!" Meowth answered. "I hope you do remember which way we have taken, otherwise we're trapped!"

"Er... of course I do remember, Meowth! Who do you take me for?" Jessie rudely answered. Team Rocket wisely chose to run away from there and get out, even at the cost of crossing the Slugmas' territory again...

"Me and my stupid idea of trailing those twerps!" Jessie screamed as the ground began fracturing under her boots. "This place is becoming a death trap!"

**oooooooooo**

Menacing blue-black clouds were covering the sky above Knot Island, and the once calm waters of the ocean started literally boiling under the inhabitants' stupefied eyes. Many of the Knot Island people were fleeing for their lives and trying to get as far as possible from the volcano, from which a river of red-hot lava had begun flowing. A red thunderbolt struck the sea, raising up a huge mass of water and creating some innatural scarlet spectacles, while purplish flames danced on the water.

And, shrieking inindignation, the Fire Titan, Moltres, took flight in the skies of Kanto!

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Woah, things got real pretty fast, and the Sludge Bomb just hit the fan, didn't they? Of course, Damien and his friends were no match for Misty, Dawn, Brock and Gary, but the same can't be said of Moltres, who will shortly begin happily rampaging his way through the Sevii Islands, uless Ash and his friends find a way to stop him! And that's what they'll be trying to do in the next episode... with some unexpected help!**

**What am I talking about? Stay tuned, and you'll see! For the moment, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I wish you all good luck until next time!**

**Please review! I'm always glad to read what you think of this story!**

**See you soon!**


	16. Sky Chase

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Author's Note: Aaaand... here I am! This chapter was a bit of a problem to translate, because of my personal busy life and because of the fact that it was longer than I remembered, but I'm proud to say that I finally got the job done, and I hope you will be as satisfied as I am! **

**Last chapter, we've seen Moltres rise from his sleep thanks to a well thought-out trap J had laid for Ash ad Phoebe... and now as we speak, the huntress is trying to capture the Legendary Pokemon, using all means at her disposal, as the team tries their best to keep Moltres from destroying too much of Knot Island! At the same time, Zoey and her friends are caught up in a dangerous battle on the snowy fields of Mt. Coronet... a battle which they're still quite well-equipped to win, if you ask me! Still, it seems we've got ourselves a couple of pretty exciting battles to watch... and I can already tell you that you'll get awelcome surprise towards the end of this chapter!**

**So, let's not waste any more time! Let's get this fanfiction back on track, and head to Knot Island for a marathon fight!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 16 - Sky Chase**

"Darn... Probopass, use Power Gem!" the annoyed Team Vicious member ordered as Maylene's Machoke sent his Pokemon airborne with a well-placed Brick Break attack and tossed him in the thick snow with a dull thud. A little further, Zoey's Gastrodon had managed to bring her opponent's Jolteon on his knees thanks to an accurate and powerful Earth Power attack, while the enemy Grumpig had been frozen solid, courtesy of a Blizzard attack from Candice's Froslass! The only enemy still standing was the repulsive but resistant Rock-type Pokemon, who started to glow, floating a few inches above the earth, before unleashing one of his signature attacks against the Fighting Pokemon!

The weakened but unbowed Probopass let out a deep, mournful sound similar to an elephant's trumpeting, and the hat-like magnet he had on top of his body shone brightly, like a polished gem, before shooting a large, rhomboidal pink projectile towards Machoke, who quickly stood on guard and crossed his arms in front of him! The energy shot shattered on the fighter's guard, pushing him back a few steps without doing any considerable damage, and Maylene wasted no time in regaining what little ground she and her Pokemon had lost.

"Now, Machoke... use Bulk Up, and then hit that Probopass with Cross Chop!" the pink-haired girl exclaimed. Machoke didn't need her to tell him twice, spun on himself and struck a bodybuilder's pose, flexing his impressive muscles and clenching his hands into fists... then, in a sudden burst of rage and speed, he launched himself at Probopass and struck the Rock-type Pokemon on both sides with a pair of chops! Probopass' small eyes widened in pain and surprise... and one second later, the bizzarre Pokemon crumpled to the ground in a heap, leaving all three Team Vicious members speechless in front of such a crushing defeat.

They had lost... to those three groupies? How could that be possible, they were sure they had gotten the best Pokemon available from their leader! How could they possibly...

"Okay, that was the last one..." Candice commented, nodding in satisfaction as Probopass fainted... then, she turned to the weird Rock Pokemon's trainer, glaring at him almost ominously. "Now... I think these people owe Candice and her friends a good explanation! Who are you, and why did you attack us? Does this have anything to do withthe avalanche that struck Candice's town a few days ago?"

Despite having no more Pokemon and no way out, the three criminals still tried to put on some air of being brave, and after recalling his Pokemon, Probopass' trainer shook his fist at the Snowpoint City Gym Leader to intimidate her. "Hah! You think we're going to tell a bunch of rugrats like you? Why don't you go home and play with dolls?"

Zoey shrugged the insult off. "She said that for your own good, you know. But since you won't listen to reason, we have other ways to convince you!" she said as he gave a nod of assent to Maylene... who smiled gleefully and racked her knuckles as she approached the three individuals!

The Team Vicious members, undersanding that things were looking grim for them, stepped back a little as Maylene and her Machoke slowly advanced towards them...

"Now you will speak... one way or the other Hehehee..." the small martial artist chuckled...

**oooooooooo**

Moltres' awakening had unleashed the fury of nature's elements, causing panic among the inhabitants of Knot Island, who were running back in their homes or in search of a shelter, or simply stood, mouth agape, as they watched the gigantic fire bird soaring out of the volcano! Uncaring of the many people watching him, Moltres was flying majestically in the cloud-covered skies, leaving a flaming trail behind himself. Despite the rage he was possessed by, he also seemed to be confused, as if he had to get accustomized to his newfound freedom before being able to do some real damage. However, most of the people ofKnot Island had no intention to hang around long enough for him to completely regain his senses...

"Quick, this way! Get in a shelter, now!" Knot Island's Officer Jenny was saying, motioning to the people to follow her towards a safe place. A few boats had already been set up in case it was necessary to evacuate... which was in fact a good idea, since one can never be too prudent when living close to an active volcano...

As people kept running towards safety, a girl dressed in black, with a large and regal Mightyena at her side, tried to keep her distance from the crowd in order not to be swept away. She was looking at the erupting volcano, keeping her eyes affixed there as much as she could, while also never losing sight of the gigantic, fire-feathered bird of prey flying around it... and while both her and her Mightyena looked like they were in a hurry, they didn't show as much fear as the other inhabitants did.

"Darn... so it was true! Someone was trying something with Kanto's Legendary Birds! And maybe with a few more Pokemon as well..." the girl said to herself. Not much older than Ash, she was dressed in an elegant gothic lolita costume complete with a black skirt with white highlights, knee-length white socks, black shoes and a red ribbon in her hair, and contrasting with her dark appearence, highlighted by her pale skin and black hair, her eyes were green and shone with life, almost hypnotically. "If only we had moved earlier, we could have done something before the situation got to this point."

"_Might! Might!_" her Mightyena barked, as if in disapproval. The girl noticed and nodded.

"I know, I know, Night Sky... what's done is done." she answered, stroking the black-and-grey hyena on her head. "But now we must find a way to keep the damage to a minimum... which means stopping those who awakened Moltres! Of course, taking care not to get sizzled to a sausage ourselves..."

"_Might!_" the Dark Pokemon agreed. Her trainer motioned for her to come, and the two began running in the opposite direction of the fleeing population, trying to reach the road to the volcano. First things first, of course, they had to reach the volcano and try to understand what really had happened, and that was the easy part.

"Of course, as soon as we're there, we'll need to find a way to stop that little birdie up there..." the girl told herself, grimacing as another high-pitched shriek from Moltres threatened to shatter her eardrums. "My team is strong, that's a given... but can they really hold a candle to... a Legendary Pokemon?"

**oooooooooo**

"Stable asset. Engines working at maximum efficiency."

"Acknowledge. Correcting vertical axis. Ready to move."

"Free network. No further communications."

Inside of a huge control room, in the bowels of the gigantic flying machine that had just smashed open the side of Mt. Ember, a group of Team Vicious grunts were busying themselves with the preparations for the final part of the operation. As soon as J was back, they would start chasing Moltres, who was still flying around the volcano in a fit of rage and confusion, and trying to capture him. The criminals seemed determined to do a good job of this...

One of the operators turned to a door behind his back as soon as it slid open and allowed J, a cruelly determined expression on her face and her Pokeballs back in her belt, to enter the control room. The other Team Vicious members quickly moved away to allow her to use the controls...

"Welcome back, miss J." the closest grunt said. "We can see that... the plan has worked to perfection! We knew we could count on your expertise!"

"Thanks. I wish I could say the same of you." the woman stated. "Anyway, I guess everything is ready. We can proceed with capturing Moltres."

One of the grunts was surprised at this, and voiced his own doubts. "Er... sorry, miss J, but do we really have to start now? I mean, there are still some of our companions down there..."

"Leave them be, we don't nee them anymore." J said, not even turning away from the radar screen. "To recover them would be nothing but a waste of time at this point. They well knew what they were getting into. You just make sure everything is under control... and don't let the Fire Titan get away! The boss won't be forgiving if we let him escape."

While they surely were no saints, the other Team Vicious grunts were quite put off by J's ruthless orders, but since she was still their superior, they didn't protest and resumed their work, even if with a slightly heavier heart. One of them, standing in front of a screen, pushed a few buttons in order to visualize Moltres' position and make sure the flying vehicle could follow his every movement.

"Looks like the target is still disoriented due to the sudden awakening. This does give us a small edge on him." another operator said. "Convey engine power to the electrodes. Stabilize flight asset and get fireproof shields ready. We'll need to use every weapon we have to capture Moltres!"

As the preparatives continued around her, J placed herself at the commands and smirked in satisfaction. Despite some unpredicted events, the mission was going well, and that Moltres was free, those meddling kids had become small fish...

**oooooooooo**

The earth began to shake as Ash, Pikachu and their friends old and new ran out of the caverns and continued along the path they had taken earlier on. Phoebe quickly looked behind herself, to the volcano from which Moltres had made his entrance: aside from the flames and the molten lava coming out of it, there was also an ominous black cloud rising above their heads, almost completely covering the sky. Having been born and raised on a volcanic island, Phoebe knew all to well what that was...

"That's a burning cloud! We have to get away from here, everybody!" she exclaimed in alarm.

"Burning cloud? Sounds like the name of a new Pokemon attack..." Ash exclaimed, not being an expert on names. Without ever slowing down, Misty rolled her eyes at Ash's daftness...

"That's a very dangerous phenomenon, Ash!" the more savvy Brock answered. "Volcanic dust expelled by the volcano reaches extreme temperatures, and can spread with great speed. Breathing the hot vapors is fatal, we have to get away from the burning cloud at all costs!"

"Cripes, of course we do! I'm kinda too young to die like that!" Dawn exclaimed in fear as she looked at the black cloud. While the burning cloud was still far away from the team, after knowing the inherent risks, even that seemed too close for confort! Apparently in agreement with her, the rest of the team wisely chose to run for it, only slowing down when they were sure the burning cloud couldn't catch up with them.

"Looks like we're safe, for now..." Misty commented. "But that's only the start of our problems... how can we get the little birdie back in the cage?"

"Wish I knew, Misty..." Ash said as he remember his first - and sadly, not the last - run-in with Moltres, when the Fire Titan had been captured by the mad collector Lawrence III. In that occasion, they had managed to calm down the crazed Legendary thanks to Lugia... but now, could they really pull that off again?

He was still trying to think of a solution when someone bumped into him, sending him sitting on the ground. The young boy yelped in surprise as Pikachu stepped backwards, charging his cheeks up with electricity... but one second later, both he and Ash were able to see that the ones who had collided with Ash were the usual Team Rocket, running away from another one of the caves...

"Owww! Darn these mountains! Obstacles everywhere..." Jessie muttered as she stood up, rubbing her head... then, as soon as she looked up and saw who she was talking to, she almost fainted in shock! "Aaaaargh! You again? Aren't you happy with blowing us sky high every time?"

"Team Rocket!" Ash exclaimed. "And what about you guys? What are you doing around here? Are you trying to pull off one of your tricks?"

"Wha... hey, hey, kiddo, hold yer horses! Don't jump to conclusions!" Meowth exclaimed, putting his hands forward. With all that had happened, taking a Thundershock from Pikachu was the last thing he wanted... "We were just trying to get out of this place... but we lost our way, and here we are! Sigh... and my tail is still smarting from that Magcargo's Flamethrower!"

"Er... we... we haven't lost our way, for crying out loud!" Jessie exclaimed in outrage. The fucsia-haired girl didn't like it when anyone doubted of her abilities, in any way, shape or form... "I... er... I was just trying to orient myself in this mess... and that's not what we need to worry about, anyway!"

"I have no idea who these three are... though I can guess they aren't really your friends... but she's right! Let's not waste time on this nonsense, we have bigger problems to think about!" Phoebe exclaimed as she pointed to the sky above them... and the fiery Moltres flying in circles aroundthe roaring volcano! The fiery phoenix seemed to have gotten back at least some of his bearings, and was now shooting Flamethrower attacks left and right, overtaken by rage for having been awakened, but lacking an obvious target on which to vent.

"Yeah... Moltres woke up, and he's quite pissed that they awakened him so rudely..." Gary said with sarcasm.

Needless to say, Team Rocket was hardly enthusiastic about seeing the burning bird of prey, mostly because of what they had been through during the whole fiasco with Lawrence III... and in fact, Jessie, James and Meowth screamed in terror and comically hugged each other, waterjet tears gushing out of their eyes! "AAAAARGH! Noooo, not that giant turkey again!" James whined. "I was hoping I'd never see him again!"

"We're done for! It's over! We're all going to die!" Jessie cried, before Phoebe took charge of the situation and called for calm, clapping her hands twice.

"Now, now! Calm down, you two!" the island girl exclaimed. "Look, I have no idea what's your deal with that Legendary Pokemon, but staying here and shaking in fear won't help us any! As we speak, he's getting ready to go on a rampage... we have to find a way to stop him!"

"Miss Phoebe is right... but I'm afraid we have no way to stop Moltres!" Dawn said, just a little before J's huge flying machine soared in the skies above with an ominous rumble, passing through the cloud of ashes and dust, and heading towards Moltres as if they wanted to ram him!

"Ah! What's that?" Misty exclaimed, her eyes wide as Moltres, finally finding a target, blew an enormous crimson flame towards the flying fortress' side. But the attack did not register, and the flames simply slipped on the huge vehicle's plated armor, like water on a duck's feathers! "I can't believe it, it repelled Moltres' Flamethrower like nothing! What's that thing made of?"

"J doesn't catch Pokemon in a regular battle..." Brock explained. "She always makes use of the technologies her employers give her, or she gets others to create for her. And since her services are quite expensive, you can bet that whoever can hire her also has access to all the technologies she needs."

"This makes things a lot more difficult..." Phoebe murmured. "If we can't find a way to reach either Moltres or J's flying machine, we're powerless to do anything except stay and watch as J captures Moltres!"

"Either that, or Moltres burns this island to a crisp..." Gary went on. "We need to find a way out of this mess, at any cost!"

Misty produced one of her Pokealls. "Well, maybe I can do something." she said. "Come out, Gyarados! We still need your help!"

The redhead threw her Pokeball, letting out the gigantic blue sea serpent, who roared in determination and flew a few feet above the ground, before lowering himself and letting his trainer get on his back.

"Ugh... I didn't think the twerpette had a Gyarados now..." James murmured. He was not exactly a fan of that kind of Pokemon as well, because of an all-too-close encounter with one of those at the beginning of his journey. If only he hadn't gotten rid of that Magikarp right at that moment...

One wouldn't have thought Misty had once been afraid of Gyarados by the way she nimbly got on the sea serpent's back... and the mighty Pokemongrunted an affirmative before gaining back his altitude. "Guys, I'll try to hold them off as best as I can! I think I can distract them a little, at least!"

"Misty! What are you thinking, it's too dangerous!" Ash exclaimed in worry. Gary, Dawn andBrock were feeling much the same way... while Phoebe, while agreeing with them, also felt that it was the only way to at least buy some time and keep Moltres from being captured...

"You've got such a talent for stating the obvious, Ash Ketchum..." the redhead deadpanned. "But... at this point, I'm afraid this is the only way to slow down J and Moltres! And my Gyarados is the only one of my Pokemon capable of going that high!"

"Hold on a second, kid! You are not forgetting my Ghosts, now are you?" Phoebe interjected as she took more of her Pokeballs. "Come out, Mismagius! You too, Drifblim!"

In a blinding flash, the elegant violet Ghost Pokemon appeared in front of her trainer and floated in midair, as did the blimp-like spectre one split second later. "Mismagius, Drifblim... we're kind of in a pinch right now! I need you to help my friend stop Moltres and that accursed flying fortress! And I need to count on you for that..." the Hoenn Elite Four instructed her Pokemon. The two ghosts did not hesitate and, trusting in their trainer and her judgement, they took to the air along with Misty and Gyarados to meet the challenge!

"Well, if they're going about it this way... I certainly can't do any less!" Jessie stated. "Go, Yanmega! I choose you!"

The gigantic dragonfly popped out of her Pokeball with a resonating buzz... and at the same time, Wobbuffet's Pokeball snapped open, letting the weird azure Pokemon out! "_Wobbuffet!_" he shouted, ruining the whole dramatic atmosphere!

"Ugh... I didn't ask you to come out, you dimwit... oh, what the heck!" Jessie growled, resisting the urge to punch the weird Psychic Pokemon upside his head. "Well, since you're here, you might as well make yourself useful, right? Climb on Yanmega's back and help her! Deflect all the attacks coming your way, am I understood?"

"_Wobbuffet!_" he croaked in assent. Yanmega's insectile face briefly contorted in what could be seen as a grimace of embarassment and annoyance, but the monstrous bug did as her trainer said and picked Wobbuffet up with her segmented paws, then threw him on her own back like he was a mere backpack! Buzzing in assent, Yanmega took to the air herself and joined Gyarados and the two ghosts.

"Okay, guess I might as well lend a hand myself!" Gary said. "Come out, Fearow! Show them what you're made of!"

"Go, Staraptor! _Gotta catch 'em all!_" Ash echoed.

"We need your aid once again... Crobat!" Brock stated as he let out his bat-like Pokemon again.

Dawn nodded. "And I'm not going to hold back myself... take the spotlight, Togekiss!" she exclaimed. All the trainers threw their Pokeballs in the air, and their respective Pokemon popped out and soared into the cinder-colored skies, letting out their battle cries! Hearing the name Togekiss, Misty turned that way for a second... and felt her heart clench as she saw the latest addition in Dawn's team. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see that it was an evolution of Togetic... and for obvious reasons, this brought out a lot of memories for her.

"Togekiss..." the redhead murmured to herself. But she quickly snapped out of it, reminding herself to concentrate on the task at hand - namely, to stop J and keep Moltres from doing too much damage. The rest of the team could do nothing but stay on the ground and wish good luck to the ones who had taken to the air...

However, Ash did not seem to be satisfied with simply sending out Staraptor and hoping for the best. Feeling angry at the idea of being forced to watch as Misty and the Pokemon who were with her risked their lives, the young champion looked at Gyarados, just as a volley of electric beams was fired from the front part of J's flying machine and missed Moltres by an hair's breadth. The legendary Pokemon retaliated with another Flamethrower, once again uselessly sliding off the vehicle's armor...

"The battle hasn't even started yet, and I can already see that it will be terrifying..." Phoebe commented, only showing the barest hint of fear. Actually, even the Elite Four member was terrified, but she was doing her best to keep her self-control. "We can only hope that all those Pokemon are enough to stop this mess... this island wouldn't last long if Moltres decided to attack..."

"And if Moltres was caught by J... I prefer not to think about it!" Brock concluded.

Dawn joined her hands in front of her, praying with all of herself. "Please, Misty... be careful, my friend!" she implored, never once managing to avert her eyes from the battle. It was only a few seconds from then, before the three factions clashed... and even Team Rocket silently prayed that Misty and the Pokemon could stop the Fire Titan's wrath.

"_Pika pi..._" Pikachu squeaked as he looked at Ash, while the huge phoenix aimed straight at J's flying machine...

Ash gulped, only then seeing that his throat was dry. "I know, Pikachu... but as of now, there's nothing we can do... we just need to trust Misty and our Pokemon!" he reluctantly said.

**oooooooooo**

"What? Miss J, there are problems out there! Our radars show that a group of flying Pokemon are approaching us at high speed!" one of the Team Vicious members exclaimed as a number of blips appeared on the radar screen.

J didn't seem to mind all that much, though, and reacted with an uncaring smirk. "Hm... So, those kids have decided to annoy me to the last. No matter, they can't do much at the moment. Ignore their Pokemon, unless they damage our weapons, and concentrate your fire on Moltres. We cannot let this chance go to waste!"

"Al... Alright, miss J!" the grunt said, trying to aim other weapons towards their target. "Don't worry, we'll make sure to capture him!"

"Good for you, the boss won't accept a failure!" the mercenary said, turning back to the console. On the main screen, the woman saw Moltres doing an acrobatic loop, then attacking again, charging head on. Smirking, J pressed a button and unleashed a storm of green laser beams upon the Legendary Bird, scratching his wing and causing him to shriek in disappointment. However, Moltres wasted no time following up with another Flamethrower... and this time, some of the external cameras overheated, and the images on the main screen flickered out. J grit her teeth in vague annoyance, but it didn't last long... and when the visuals turned back to normal, and Moltres put some distance between himself and the flying machine, the huntress frowned in determination.

"You can keep up with your tricks all you want, Moltres... I've driven you into a corner, you cannot escape this time!" she said to herself.

**oooooooooo**

"Okay, guys, here we go!" Misty exclaimed from Gyarados' back, screaming at the top of her lungs in order to let herself be heard by Phoebe's Ghost Pokemon and by the others who had joined her. "Gyarados and I will try to distract Moltres and keep him occupied! You think of J's flying machine... destroy her weapons and keep her from catching Moltres! Good luck, guys, it's all riding on you!"

The Ghosts howled in assent, and Yanmega rapidly beat her wings, buzzing loudly enough to drown out the sounds of battle for a second... then, they all went their separate ways to face the separate threats. Gyarados tried to attack Moltres, who was still venting his rage upon J's vehicle... and once the way was clear, the sea monster waved his enormous tail, which was surrounded b what looked like a gigantic, roaring tidal wave...

"Gyarados, now! Hit him with Aqua Tail!" Misty exclaimed. Gyarados waved his massive tail in a powerful arc in front of him, tossing the tidal wave against Moltres and striking the legendary phoenix head-on! Moltres shrieked in rage and irritation, as a massive cloud of steam rose from his body, and lost altitude for a split second, his wings beating clumsily in the air... but he recovered a second later and turned to his new opponents, unsheathing his claws as he tried to dive down on them. Misty took a deep breath, knowing that even if she and Gyarados had gotten the advantage of the first hit, the battle with the Legendary Pokemon was going to be long and hard...

"He's coming, Gyarados..." Misty said as she encouraged the massive sea serpent to stand ready.

It would have been a chance for J and her men to take advantage of Moltres' distraction and hit him with all they had... but their plans were disrupted by a bunch of howling Ghosts and miscellaneous other Pokemon atacking their weapons, led by an incredibly fast dragonfly who was darting around in search for chinks in the armor! Mismagius howled as she summoned a Shadow Ball and tossed it at a group of electrical devices, doing some damage... and at the same time, Drifblim managed to quickly dodge a salvo of lasers and took out the guns with a well-placed Ominous Wind!

Even Yanmega and the rest of the team were doing their best: the Ogre Garner was so fast that even the automatic lock-on systems couldn't keep up with her, and just when Yanmega seemed to slow down, it was only to close her eyes, concentrate and summon a bunch of glowing, floating rocks all around herself. She then telecinetically threw the rocks right at the flying machine, whose thick armour mostly absorbed the hit... but it wasn't in vain, as the after-effects of Yanmega's Ancientpower soon showed: the giant dragonfly was engulfed in a visible golden aura, and quickly appeared to fly faster and to have been invigorated by her latest attack!

Fearow's Drill Peck ripped a hole in one of the battleship's doors, and Dawn's Togekiss had blown a few holes in the armor thanks to her Aura Sphere attacks. Staraptor and Crobat, on the other hand, were drawing the automated defense mechanisms' fire, using their agility to dodge all attacks...

And yet, J's flying fortress had not been damaged too significantly, and J was continuing her attack on Moltres without slowing down... Mismagius thought it would be better to focus on the bigger weapons, in order to quickly disable J's flying machine, even if it meant to be exposed to the minor weapons' fire...

A chilling shriek warned them of Moltres attacking again! Annoyed at the two-way attacks he had to deal with, the fiery bird of prey soared again, evading the electric beams J was shooting... and sweeped the air in front of himself with another Flamethrower, narrowly missing Misty and her Gyarados! The redhead screamed in alarm as the flames came dangerously close to her, and clung to her champion's back with all of her strength, trying not to look down, as the ground was a few dozen metres below...

"Darn... I don't think I've ever been in a worse position! I should think before I act..." Misty repriminded herself. But her own stubbornness kept her from stopping to think about that, and the Water Pokemon trainer stood up slightly on Gyarados' back to encourage him. "Don't give up, Gyarados! We have to keep at it!"

The sea serpent roared and glared at Moltres before charging at him once again. He knew that, despite his type advantage, he would lose in a straight-up fight... but if only he could force Moltres away from J's flying fortress without getting caught in the burning cloud around Mt. Ember, maybe he could stand a chance! With renewed strength, Gyarados roared a challenge and stood ready to face Moltres once again...

**oooooooooo**

"What are you fools doing? We've already lost some of our automatic defense mechanisms... how can you let those Pokemon pull our legs?" J exclaimed in annoyance, after taking another glance at the controls. "Don't let that rugrat get Moltres away from us!"

"We're doing our best, miss J, but it isn't easy! These buggers are really driving us nuts!" one of the agents said, trying not to sound disrespectful. J seemed to have forgotten that some of those Pokemon belonged to an Elite Four from Hoenn, and that, despite the fact that the actual damage had been minimal, it was still affectng the onboard functions. "Okay, activate fire extinguishers 4 and 5. Fire in Block B. Exclude propellers from 1 to 4. Damage control, and proceed at maximum possible thrust! Switching to electronic lock-on system! We cannot let those rugrats annoy us anymore!"

"Route correction, 15 degrees right." another operator said. "Acquire target and attack at maximum power."

"Hm. That's better." J answered as soon as her flying ship was back in a stable asset. Misty's Gyarados had managed to let the Fire Titan put some distance, but not enough to really matter... and in a few minutes, J would be able to attack again...

**oooooooooo**

As the battle raged on in the skies above Knot Island, Ash and the rest of the team were staying on the ground, powerlessly looking at the scene. It would have been a spectacular battle, with all the attacks blazing left and right, explosions and puffs of smoke... had it not been for the fact that they were in a really dangerous situation! And one of their closest friends was risking her life to fix that mess!

A few moments later, Ash decided that enough was enough. "Well, that's that, guys, I cannot just stay here and do nothing!" he exclaimed as he abrupty turned to his friends and Phoebe. "Misty and our Pokemon are fighting up there... and I can't just leave them alone! I want to go as well!"

"Wha... Ash, what do you plan to do?" Dawn exclaimed in shock. "Haven't you seen how high up in the air they are? How can you hope to get there? And... even if you were to reach them..."

"I know, I know, Dawn! It's dangerous... but I have to at least try!" he answered. "It's probably a foolish thing for me to say... but I can't help it, that's just who I am! Guys, you stay here... I and Pikachu will come back in one piece!"

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse squeaked, agreeing with his best friend. Before anyone could argue against this, the young champion and his best friend started running up a narrow road going up the side of the mountain, climbing up by sheer force of will! For a second, Phoebe thought it best to at least try and call them back, but as the Elite Four raised a hand towards them, Brock told her to leave them be.

"No, miss Phoebe... you won't be able to hold them back." Brock told the confused island girl, calmly yet firmly. "That's the way Ash is... when he sees friends or Pokemon in danger, he just can't stay put. You won't be able to change his mind..."

"I always knew that kid isn't all that right in the head..." Meowth commented. "But I have to say, he's got guts! Even though he's our enemy... I have to admit I admire him for that!"

"That's two of us, then..." Jessie said.

Dawn gulped. Now it wasn't just Misty and the other Pokemon to be in danger... if only she could do something as well...

The blue-haired girl frowned, her anxiety giving way to cautious hope. Maybe the situation wasn't all that hopeless. Maybe, if she were to play her cards with some cunning...

In the meantime, Ash and Pikachu had climbed the rock cliff, finally finding themelves in front of an impressive and terrifying vista of Knot Island being wracked by the volcano's wrath! An apocalyptic night had fallen upon the archipelago, the waters were boiling madly, rivers of lava dropping straight into the sea... and several boats, each of them filled with the terrified inhabitants of Knot Island, were heading to the open sea. Entire swarms of frightened Slugmas were crawling out of the crevasses, resembling small rivulets of lava flowing from between the rocks. The lightning storm was getting worse and worse by the moment, while the battle among the dark clouds was still visible, too far up in the air for Ash and Pikachu to be able to do anything to help!

Ash grit his teeth as a gust of wind slspped him in the face, and his heart skipped a beat when Moltres' Flamethrower barely missed Misty's Gyarados, who tried to counter with an equally unsuccessful Aqua Tail! The combatants seemed to be evenly matched for now... but Moltres was still at full power, while Misty's Gyarados was going to exhaust himself soon...

"_Pikachu pi!_" Pikachu squeaked as he attempted to call out to Misty and her Gyarados.

"Ugh... no way... we're still too far away, Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed in worry and frustration. He hated to feel powerless in such moments... if only he could fly up there and show Moltres what he and his team were made of... so that Misty was not facing such terrible danger alone...

If only there was a way...

Just then, as a familiar feeling overtook him, Pikachu raised his ears and turned around, in the direction of the dark clouds. For a moment, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary... but one second later he was able to see a couple of winged red creatures energically gliding towards him and Ash... two creatures he was very familiar with, having travelled with one of them for months!

"_Pika! Pika pi, pika pika chu!_" the electric mouse squeaked, grabbing the leg of Ash's trousers and pulling towards that direction. Caught by surprise, the young boy looked at Pikachu first, and saw him pointing to the two rapidly-approaching Pokemon...

And that was when Ash saw them! Only a hundred metres away, their wings splayed majestically and their tails aflame, two magnificent and terrifying Charizards were flying, one of them wearing a pink ribbon that didn't detract from her fearsome countenance! About the other one... well, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who he was, and both Ash and Pikachu smiled brightly with renewed hope as the firey dragons dropped down and began the landing procedure...

"Charizard, Charla!" Ash exclaimed. "Welcome back! I never expected you to come just now"

"_Pikachu!_" Pikachu echoed.

"_CHAAAAAAR!_" The two Fire / Flying Pokemon landed, threw their heads back and roared in defiance, breathing a large trail of fire from their terrifying maws! Charizard, one of Ash's strongest Pokemon, and his beloved Charla, from Charicific Valley, had come to help the young aspiring Pokemon Master in that critical moment!

Perhaps there was still hope...

**oooooooooo**

"O... Okay... okay! We'll talk! We'll talk!" one of the three criminals who had attacked Zoey and her friends murmured. At the moment, two of them were lying on the ground, with huge lumps on their heads thanks to Maylene and her Machoke... and the one speaking right now was standing with his back against a tree and a visible black eye! "We... we are part of Team Vicious, a new criminal organization using Pokemon for their own agenda... and... we're here on orders of the supreme commander! We... we were ordered to capture Regice, the Pokemon living among these glaciers..."

"Aaaand?" Maylene said while smiling amiably and keeping her right fist up, just as a reminder for the guy not to try anything funny.

"And that's all! Really! Believe me!" the man stuttered, not wanting to be hit again by the small martial artist. "I just know this much... the boss wanted Regice... and we had to catch it for him! But we were clumsy and Regice took notice of us... it fled, and now we're trying to chase it!"

"Chase it, huh?" Candice almost spat out. Things were much clearer now... since Regice had been disturbed, the glacier had become unstable, and that was how the snowslide upon Snowpoint City had happened! Worse yet, those Team Vicious guys were continuing their wild goose chase, with the clear risk of more avalanches when Regice moved again! If this was to happen, the number of victims would surely grow a lot! At that moment, they were the only ones who could keep the tragedy from repeating...

"Alright, so now you're coming with us, and taking us to your boss." Zoey said, her tone allowing for no refusal. "If you help us, we won't turn you over to the police."

"And if you don't, you'll get another dose of Maylene and Machoke's special treatment." Candice continued. "And Candice doesn't think you want that, right?" She winked in Maylene's direction, and both the pink-haired girl and her Machoke cracked her knuckles, causing the three criminals to jump up in fear, their hands frantically moving in front of them and their faces turning blue with fear!

"Aaaaargh! No, not that, please! We'll do anything you want!" the woman with th Grumpig said. Maylene nodded, as if saying that it was a wise decision... and Zoey turned her eyes to one of the surrounding snow-covered peaks, catching a glimpse of a solitary Noctowl flying away just then.

"Hm? A... Noctowl?" Candice questioned as he too saw the Flying Pokemon getting away. "Candice is no expert of Flying Pokemon, but shouldn't Noctowl be, well, nocturnal? Not to mention, they usually don't live at such heights, right?"

"Exactly..." Zoey said suspiciously. "Whoever these Team Vicious guys are, they're keeping a close eye on us. We must not underestimate them..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Well, not much to say... especially since I'm very tired, and I still need to do a few things before I call it a day. But still, I hope people liked Charizard's return! You'll see, the battle with Moltres will really, no pun intended of course, heat up now!**

**See you next chapter... and please, review!**


	17. Charizard's Counterattack

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back!**

**Alright, guys, I'll make it really short this time: our heroes are in trouble! Moltres has awakened, and Knot Island is in terrible danger... but just when things look bleak, a couple of old acquaintances, the ever-popular Charizard and Charla, come to help Ash and his friends in this struggle! Will their aid manage to win the day, and will J be denied her prize?**

**And what will Brock, Dawn and the others do, in the meantime?**

**To know that, just keep reading!**

**Oh, and by the way... the title for this chapter is probably a little lame! But as a Gundam fangirl, I just couldn't pass up this chance!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 17 - Charizard's Counterattack**

The entire tract of land around Mt. Ember was being shaken by the earthquake, and glowing red-hot magma was flowing from the crack in the ground, making the whole zone more and more dangerous by the minute. The Pokemon who, up until a few moments before, were peacefully going about their lives in the forests and the prairies, were now trying to run away and scattering in all directions... and among these, the Rhyhorn who had tried to attack Ash and his friends, who was now smashing down any obstacles in his way to safety with his mighty horn. Even the other Pokemon were taking care not to approach him too much, knowing that the fierce rhino would not have taken kindly to any distraction.

However, just when it seemed that Rhyhorn was going to get away, a splash of boiling lava coming from a nearby crack hit his rear right leg. His rocky skin spared him from fatal damage, but Rhyhorn widened his eyes and bellowed in pain as he began to drag the injured leg in a desperate attempt to regain the lost advantage. He grit his teeth angrily as more chunks of red-hot magma rained down around him, missing him by only a few feet and making him feel an annoying wave of heat... if he hadn't been able to get away somehow, he would have soon been buried in lava...

By sheer luck, among the smoke and the flames, the near-sighted rhinoceros Pokemon managed to make out an opening in the rocky cliff he had been running along, which looked like a possible way to safety, or at least a stable shelter. The Ground / Rock Pokemon dragged himself to that safe spot and managed to slip into the opening, trying to get as deep inside as possible...

**oooooooooo**

Ash and Pikachu couldn't believe it... Charizard was back! One of his first and dearest Pokemon had come back, joined by his beloved Charla, to help them out in that difficult moment! The young boy felt tears of joy sting at his eyes... but a deafening blast, coming from a rocky cliff that had just fallen to Moltres' Flamethrower, quickly shook him out of his reverie! Misty's Gyarados had just barely dodged the gout of flame, and the redhead had just barely managed to keep herself from falling by holding tight to the sea serpent's iron-hard scales! In the meanwhile, J's flying machine was keeping up the assault, and the Pokemon swarming around it were barely managing to slow it down! Something needed to be done, and fast!

"Charizard... I'm really happy to see you, my friend!" Ash exclaimed as he hugged the mighty dragon. "But... now we have to do something to help Misty and our friends. You've seen what's going on, right? Moltres is tearing this island down, and J is trying to capture him... in both cases, it would be a terrible thing! We have to do something to stop them!"

"_Pika pika, pikachu pi chu pika pika chuuuu!_" Pikachu squeaked as he pointed to the ongoing battle. Charizard quickly understood and, after nodding to Charla, crouched low on the ground as to allow Ash and Pikachu to climb on his back.

"_CHAR!_" the dragon grunted, his mouth cracking a smile as he told his trainer that it was time to be back in action! Practically grinning from one ear to the other, Ash gently stroke Charizard's head before climbing on his back... and the red dragon rose majestically and spread his wings, roaring in defiance as he took to the air! Charla followed after him, as Ash held down his ever-present hat with his free hand. Then Ash and Pikachu looked at each other and nodded, getting ready for the battle they were about to face...

But now, the electric mouse was sure they had a good chance at winning!

**oooooooooo**

"We have deactivated the damaged engines, miss J... but our speed has suffered as a result!" one of the Team Vicious grunts exclaimed, as the rest of the crew restlessly tried to keep the flying ship up to speed. "At the moment, Moltres is engaged in battle with one of the interfering Pokemon... and the others are still trying to delay us! They haven't caused important damage for now, but..."

Annoyed by her henchmen's incessant chatter, J pushed him away with a simple gesture of her arm. "I understand, no need to make a resume for me! I can see you cannot carry out your orders if your life was riding on it... so I guess I'll have to do everything myself, in the end!" she quickly summed up. Her henchmen stepped away as the huntress brought out one of her Pokeballs, a mundane type this time, and opened it, letting out one of her strongest Pokemon! "Come out, Salamence! I need your services!"

With a warlike roar, the winged dragon appeared above the heads of the Team Vicious members, some of whom actually freaked out at the unexpected sight, while J nodded in satisfaction and pressed a button on the control interface. "Salamence! Take out those annoying gnats out there! I will take care of the rest and catch Moltres! All hands, man your stations! Do not let Moltres get away, or you'll have to answer to me!"

"Of course, miss!" the other Team Vicious members answered almost unanimously as they all went back to their assigned places, the threat more than enough to shake them and force them to double their efforts. A sliding panel opened up on the cabin's ceiling, allowing J's Salamence to take to the air and get to the outside of the flying fortress...

**oooooooooo**

...where Phoebe's ghosts and the Flying Pokemon belonging to Ash and his friends' teams were busy trying to destroy as much as possible of the immense flying machine, blowing up its weapons and distracting the enemy just enough to allow Ash, Misty and their Pokemon to buy time. Yanmega, still holding Wobbuffet in her paws, quickly passed near a radar and shot an Air Cutter attack which neatly bisected it, causing it to explode one heartbeat later... as Drifblim used a Double Team attack to evade a bunch of lasers. Mismagius intervened immediately after, shooting a pair of cannons with a Thunderbolt attack. Gary's Fearow, Brock's Crobat, Dawn's Togekiss and Ash's Staraptor were attacking from various directions, and they seemed to be putting a bit of a dent in the flying machine's defenses. All in all, they were doing a good job of it... but the situation took a turn for the worse when Fearow sensed a sudden jerking movement on his left, and turned that way just in time to see J's Salamence bearing down on him, blood-red wings spread and eyes blazing with fury in sharp contrast with his fine, elegant blue-green scale! The bird of prey immediately saw that they were facing a tough opponent and shrieked in alarm, trying to get away from Salamence's path as he called out to his companions...

Just in time too, as J's Salamence quickly did a spectacular acrobatic maneuver, breathed in, and shot out a powerful Dragonbreath attack, shootng an azure flame from his maw and almost hitting Dawn's Togekiss with it. The cute flying Pokemon rapidly beat her small wings and got away from danger, but J's Salamence get up close and personal with blinding speed and struck Crobat with a Thunder Fang attack, his electrified jaws clamping shut on the giant bat's wing, who shrieked in pain as he lost altitude, his wings frantically beating in the air. Togekiss tried to take advantage of the moment to hit Salamence with an Hyper Beam, powering up for just a momet before unleashing a red beam of energy at his opponent! Salamence's eyes shot open as he used his wings to protect himself, but he only managed to soften the blow somewhat: he was still struck by it and forced to drop a few feet with a pained roar... but the Dragon Pokemon quickly recovered and tried to attack again while Togekiss was winded.

Meanwhile, Yanmega, Wobbuffet and Phoebe's Ghost Pokemon were still trying to slow down J's aerial base as much as they could, destroying her defence systems and blowing holes in its hull wherever possible. Some lasers were targeting Yanmega and Wobbuffet, but luckily, the weird Psychic Pokemon reacted in time, using his trademark Mirror Coat to wrap himself in a scarlet aura which sent all lasers back to the offender! Mismagius nodded and used his Thunderbolt to join Drifblim's Shadow Ball in attacking the fortress once again...

**oooooooooo**

Misty caught her breath right after the latest, shattering clash between her Gyarados and Moltres: up until then, the sea serpent had managed to hold his own rather well, but now he was beginning to tire out, while Moltres was still as good as new despite all the hits he had taken, and was spouting flame all over the island, adding to the damaged done by the tremors and the flowing lava. Gyarados was obviously not going to last much longer... Misty knew she had to think of a way out fast, or at least hope that her friends managed to hold off J's flying machine for a little more time, or else this battle would have taken a pretty nasty turn...

"Darn..." the redhead muttered as she tried to hold on tightly to her pokemon's back. "If only I didn't have to concentrate on two things at a time, I might have a chance..."

All of a sudden, Gyarados' eyes widened as he turned to his side, feeling that something was coming. Misty did the same, wondering about what her Pokemon had seen... and remained stupefied when she saw Ash and Pikachu riding upon Charizard, heading straight towards Moltres, with Charla only a few metres behind them! Misty remembered the day when Ash and Charizard had parted ways very clearly... and whenever the Fire Pokemon returned, it was always a great moment for her as well!

"Charizard! Charla!" the red-haired girl exclaimed. "I... I really didn't think I'd see you again here! Ash, Pikachu! Be careful, that Legendary Pokemon plays for keeps!"

"We know, Misty... we've had our experiences with him!" Ash answered in a self-assured tone, as Charizard and Charla stood at Gyarados' side. "But we're not going to make this easy on him! By the way, Misty, we hope we haven't kept you waiting too long! Hehehee..."

Misty rolled her eyes and smiled with sarcasm. Typical Ash, trying to be a buffoon even at such an inappropriate time! "Oh, no worries... it's not like I was desperately wishing for someone to bail me out of this mess!" she joked. "Anyway... you've really been a lifesavers, guys! Now... let's cool that hothead off, shall we?"

"_CHAAAAAAAAAR!_" Charizard and Charla roared in unison as they opened their mouths wide and shot a mighty double Flamethrower at the Legendary Pokemon, who was far too close to dodge or block it, and had no choice but to take the stream of flames head-on, which caused him to stumble in midair and fall a few feet. The legendary bird Pokemon screeched in anger and surprise, then flapped his wings again and took to the air once again, but the damage had already been done - that blow had shaken him quite a bit, and now he knew he was not dealing with insignificant opponents.

"_Pika!_" Pikachu squeaked, excited at the fact that his old travelling companion had managed to put such a powerful Pokemon on the ropes, even for just a second. "_Pika pi! Pika chu chu pika pika chu, pika?_"

"Of course, Pikachu! We still aren't close enough, but if we can just distract Moltres for a second, and then we can get close to him... then we have a chance!" Ash answered, gripping the front of his hat with his free hand. Then, he looked at Misty and gave her a thumbs-up. "Still, Misty... you and your Gyarados did a great job! One would never say that you used not to like Gyarados!"

"Hehehee... Well, let's just say it was a shock therapy..." the girl answered. Out of the corner of her eye, Misty was able to see Moltres taking to the again and launch a Drill Peck attack towards Charizard, who frowned and got ready to withstand the blow. Ash saw that the opponent was leaving himself open for a counter, and tried to think of a proper counter...

"Alright, Pikachu... stand ready! This might be our best chance to attack him!" the boy affirmed. The electric mouse nodded to his trainer first, and then to the two Charizards, and his red cheek pouches crackled with energy as he got ready to unleash all he had on the Legendary Pokemon. Another warlike yell echoed in Knot Island's cloud-filled sky as Moltres got closer and closer...

But the fiery phoenix, blinded by his rage and desire for vengeance, was unable to see Charla's counter coming: the female Charizard dodged sideways and spun on herself before launching herself at Moltres, her wings spread out. A powerful Steel Wing attack struck Moltres, and the Fire Titan grunted in annoyance as he briefly stumbled. Charizard took advantage of that window of opportunity to place himself in front of his opponent and hammer him with his wings, allowing Pikachu to get close to the enormous opponent.

"Now, Pikachu! That's the right moment!" Ash exclaimed, pointing to Moltres' unguarded chest. "Thunderbolt!"

Ash had barely finished giving his order when Pikachu raised his ears, his charge reaching the peak, and unleashed a deadly Thunderbolt attack from his diminutive body, painfully striking the Legendary Pokemon! Ash grit his teeth as Moltres' piercing, thunderous cry of pain and rage threatened to shatter his eardrums... and one second later, the mighty bird of prey separated himself from Charizard and Charla, and beat his wings in a blind rage as he tried to ascend. Ash and Misty sighed in temporary relief... at least for the moment, things were back under control, though Moltres was still strong and capable of giving them a hard time.

"Ash, we need to end this battle as soon as we can!" Misty exclaimed from her Gyarados' back. "The more we allow it to last, the more Knot Island gets damaged!"

"I know..." Ash exclaimed as he dabbed his forehead. "That's why I'm trying to think of a weak point for that huge chicken... but I can't seem to find one!"

**oooooooooo**

Dawn, Brock, Gary, Phoebe and Team Rocket was climbing as fast as they possibly could, dodging crumbling rocks and thick black smoke, in an attempt to reach an higher spot from which Dawn could enact her idea... whatever it was, as the blue-haired girl still hadn't explain what she had in mind to stop J and her henchmen. In the meanwhile, the team was passing alongside lots of fleeing Pokemon, especially Slugmas who were trying to slither away from the danger zone at the top speed their awkward, semiliquid bodies were capable of. Jessie felt somewhat afraid at the sight of the lava slugs, fearing that the Magcargo who had tried to roast them alive a few minutes earlier was among them...

"Please, let that mollusk be somewhere else... anywhere but not here!" the redhead muttered, her eyes occasionally darting to J's flying machine in order to make sure Yanmega and Wobbuffet were doing alright. "Ugh... okay, how long do we have to cllimb still? I don't like the idea of staying in this furnace much longer!"

"I know... but if my idea is correct, we can stop that flying heap of scrap metal!" Dawn replied, shaking her hand a little after she had placed it on a hot piece of stone. "Ow! Alright, we should be almost there!"

"Careful!" Gary warned. "That slab of rock is about to..."

Everyone looked in the direction Gary had pointed to... just in time to avoid a huge piece of stone that had detached itself from an overhead cliff! The enormous stone fell on the improvised road just below them, upon which a group of Slugma had just finished passing...

Or better say, almost all of the lava slugs had passed... one of them, a particularly small specimen, had been left behind, and the huge boulder fell just in front of her and caused the road to collapse and fall in the abyss, separating her from her comrades! The lava Pokemon squeaked in fear, in a desperate attempt to call for her companions, many of which turned to her in anguish... but there was nothing they coould do to help her.

"Oh, no... that Slugma will end up being trampled by the lava!" Brock exclaimed. "We need to take her to a safer place..."

"I can take care of it!" James answered. "Mime Jr., come out! I need your help!"

The small Psychic Pokemon's ball snapped open, releasing the small mime, waving his nightcap-shaped head back and forth. "_Mime! Mime!_" he happily exclaimed, seemingly not minding the devastatting eruption going on all around him...

James chuckled sheepishly at his Pokemon's exhuberance, and Gary looked at him in puzzlement, as if wondering what was the deal with him. "Er... I appreciate your enthusiasm, Mime Jr., but I'm kinda afraid it will have to wait! We're in... well... hot water, if you excuse the pun!" he stated, drawing Jessie and Meowth's annoyed glares upon himself. "Listen, Mime Jr... can you take that Slugma out of danger? He's been separated from his companions, and he'll be washed away if we don't help him!"

James pointed at the small lava slug, who was unsuccessfully trying to find an alternate way to reach the rest of her swarm. Mime Jr. gripped his fist and floated a few feet towards the lone Slugma... then, he used his Confusion attack on the ground just below Slugma's semiliquid body. The rock upon which Slugma was laying was literally lifted from the ground, and Mime Jr., demonstrating an enviable control over his psychic powers, gently moved it across the abyss, making sure the lone Slugma could slither among his friends once again! One heartbeat later, the ground upon which the fiery slug had been standing fell apart and was plunged in the ravine. Thanks to James' quick thinking, the little Pokemon had been saved just in time...

"Yay! Nicely done, Mime Jr.!" James joyfully cheered. Mime Jr. lifted both his arms in the air and yelled in victory, and the Slugma they had just saved turned to them for a second and looked at them in gratitude before slithering back towards his cheering companions...

"Great job, you two!" Phoebe complimented the azure-haired young man as the team resumed their climb. "But now we need to hurry up! This place won't hold for much longer! Okay, Dawn, tell us... what should we do now?"

"Well..." the blue-haired coordinator answered as she climbed up on the highest level of the rock formation. "This is the place where we're closer to that woman's flying machine... and you have a Rotom, right, miss Phoebe?"

Brock quickly put two and two together. "I think I get the picture. You want miss Phoebe to send out her Rotom and send it to take control of that machine's main engine, so that Rotom can disable it?"

Gary nodded. "Not a bad idea at all... from here, Rotom should be able to reach that vehicle and not be intercepted by the defense systems." he stated as he noted that they were a short distance away from the flying machine, and that all of their Pokemon were either busy with 's Salamence or with the close-range defense systems...

Phoebe studied the situation for a short while. "Well... yes, my Rotom could theoretically do that." she answered. "But that flying machine must have a particular kind of engine, so I'm not sure whether Rotom can take control of it on the fly. Anyway, it's worth a try... Okay, Rotom, come out! We still need your help!"

The Hoenn Elite Four produced her Pokeball and let the electric spectre out. Rotom appeared in a flash of light and colour, a slight smell of ozone spreading around him, and turned to his trainer with a low, buzzing noise.

"Listen up, Rotom... I know it's hazardous, but you're the only one who can do it, right now!" the dark-skinned girl said to him. "We need you to reach that flying machine and infiltrate in its main engine, without the defense systems or that Salamence catch you? I warn you, it won't be easy... if you don't feel up to this, I won't force you to!"

The electric ghost looked at J's flying machine, trying to take the measure of the latest task... and quickly understood that, in fact, it was quite risky. If that Salamence managed to catch up with him, he'd have one heck of a fight on his hands... and those defense systems looked quite dangerous as well. Still, Salamence was temporarily busy fighting all those Pokemon, and many of the lasers and cannons were out of order, so...

After thinking for a few seconds, Rotom turned to his trainer and nodded in assent. All the other trainers raised their heads towards their respective Pokemon and yelled at the top of their lungs, trying to be heard over the noise of the volcano and the machine's engines!

"CROBAT!" Brock exclaimed. "ROTOM IS COMING TO LEND YOU GUYS A HAND! TRY TO COVER HIM!"

"FEAROW! SAME GOES FOR YOU!" Gary shouted to his Flying Pokemon, hoping he would hear...

Luckily, as Rotom sped towards J's flying machine, the other Pokemon caught on to his attempt and, just as Salamence was about to attack him, Togekiss, Fearow, Crobat and Staraptor multiplied their efforts and forced the mighty dragon to hang back under a flurry of blows. Yanmega, Wobbuffet and Phoebe's ghosts got out of Rotom's way, as the plasma Pokemon reached the underside of the vehicle and phased through its outer hull as if it wasn't even there! The incorporeal Pokemon quickly reached what looked like a jumble of rapidly-moving metal parts and random electric cables. Despite the fact that controlling electronic devices was his hat, Rotom was finding himself in trouble trying to figure out how that all worked...

Trying not to look at the whole picture, but concentrating on a smaller part of the engine that looked vital to the rest, the Ghost / Electric Pokemon got closer and phased inside of that part, in a brief display of light and electric sparkles. Once Rotom had disappeared inside of the machinery, the engine kept working normally for a few seconds... then, it suddently screeched to an almost complete halt, and accelerated again! Rotom had managed to take control of that part of the machine, and now what he was doing was having repercussions on the rest of the engine...

**oooooooooo**

Rotom's tampering with the machine's engines soon took its toll... and soon enough, red lights of alarm started flashing inside of the vehicle's main room, causing the Team Vicious members to stand up from their seats in fear and incredulity!

"Miss J! We've got problems!" one of them exclaimed. "The main engine is being severely damaged! Cooling systems malfunctioning... we're losing stability! We won't be able to keep our altitude for long, if this keeps up!"

This time, J failed to remain stoic and detached, and an expression of rage and surprised appeared on her face for a second. "What? What do you mean? One of those Pokemon managed to reach our main engine? How could they, my Salamence was supposed to hold them off!"

"We... we have no idea, miss J!" another henchmen stated. "All... all I can say is that the engines are failing! We're in a terrible situation... If this keeps up, we're going to crash!"

"You are not getting paid to whine about these problems!" J cut him off, regaining her self-control. "If there are problems, try to solve them, and fast! Moltres is just in front of us, and we can't just let up now!"

"Okay, miss J!" a third grunt answered as he sat down again, trying to ignore all of those alarm signals blaring around him. The flying machine was being pushed to its limits, and even J knew that they were taking a big risk... but it was still a better option than returning empty-handed!

"And if we cannot catch Moltres..." the woman muttered to herself. "...at least we must endure long enough to verify what the boss told us. That would be a step forward in our plans, at the very least..."

**oooooooooo**

Gyarados roared in pain and rage as a Flamethrower attack signed his tail, but managed to hold back his rage and moved sideways, allowing his trainer to comfortably move on his back. Then, in an attempt to stop the firey phoenix from getting too far away, he threw himself at Moltres with all of his might and slammed him with his tail, then he clamped his teeth shut on Moltres' right leg, his jaw shining with a freezing aura. The Legendary Pokemon cawed madly and shook his injured leg to shake off the sea serpent's Ice Fang attack... then, when Gyarados actually let go, Moltres tried to smack him with his flaming wings. Charizard swooped down to attack Moltres while he was distracted, but the phoenix managed to see him coming in time, and dodged with surprising speed for such a large creature, causing the fire dragon to only hit thin air. Charla tried to sneak behind the Legendary Pokemon and hit him with a Dragon Claw, her right arm raised and glowing in a multicolored aura... but Moltres, once again showing how his Legendary status was no fluke, quickly turned around and Headbutted the female Charizard in the stomach. Charla grunted and vaulted around twice before stabilizing herself in midair... but this time, she wisely chose to hang back and wait for the next attack. Moltres, for his part, closed his wings around his body, as sparks of red light started appearing around her. Much to their disappointment, Ash, Misty and their Pokemon understood that the legendary bird was about to unleash a Fire Blast!

Immediately after, Moltres screeched and spread his wings, unleashing a large, flaming kanji-shaped projectile! Ash's eyes widened in horror as he watched the Fire Blast rapidly get closer, casting a disquieting red light on the whole landscape! There was no time to dodge that attack...

"Gyarados, quick! Attack it with Hydro Pump!" Misty hastily ordered. Luckily, the gigantic sea serpent was well-trained enough to quickly react to an order from his trainer... and, with a deafening roar of rushing water, he shot out a gigantic wave from his mouth, intercepting his opponent's Fire Blast and holding it back with a frightful screech! A dense cloud of white steam rose from the place where Moltres' Fire Blast and Gyarados' Hydro Pump had collided, as both combatants pressed against each other in an attempt to overpower the opponent... and soon, even Charizard, Charla and Pikachu joined in Gyarados' efforts, attacking with a couple of Flamethrowers and a Thunder respectively! As the four attacks joined into a single one, a bright golden light erupted from the clash of energies, an Moltres' Fire Blast slowly but surely began to get pushed back! For several moments, the awesome clash continued to light up Knot Island's skies, as if huge fireworks were blowing up among the thunderclouds. Finally, a blinding flash erupted from the contrast, and all Pokemon were thrown backwards by a powerful shockwave that threatened to knock Ash and Pikachu off of Charizard's back, if it hadn't been for the fire dragon quickly stabilizing himself by flapping his wings. Sighing in relief, Ash repositioned his trademark hat, checked whether Pikachu was fine... and then looked at Moltres, who was still hanging in the air in front of them, his flaming wings slightly signed, but otherwise still strong and furious! In fact, it seemed Ash, Misty and their Pokemon had managed to draw Moltres' full wrath upon themselves...

"Ugh... we just can't keep up like this!" Ash exclaimed, trying to get seated a little better on his dragon's back. "We need to end this quickly, or we'll never defeat Moltres..."

"_Pika pika... pika, chuuu?_" Pikachu asked, apparently asking himself how to stop such a strong and powerful Pokemon...

Luckily for them, Charizard and Charla seemed to have thought up a plan... and more to the point, J's battleship seemed to be slowing down, thanks to Phoebe's Rotom messing with its engine. Ash's first Fire-type Pokemon turned to his trainers and pointed at Moltres, who was now flying around them like a shark swimming around its prey right before the kill. After wondering about that for a moment, Ash and Misty understood what the Fire / Flying Pokemon wanted to do, and nodded to each other.

"Okay, Ash... Gyarados and I will try to distract that huge flaming chicken!" the red-haired girl told her friend. "You and Pikachu... try to hinder his movement as Charizard and Charla deal with the attacking part! You two, think you can do it?"

The two fire dragons grunted in unison, and Misty nodded and gave a thumbs up before telling her Pokemon to keep up the assault! "Perfect, then... Gyarados, it's our turn again! Unleash your best Hydro Pump upon Moltres! Now!"

The fierce serpent spread both his fins and his mouth... then, he quickly spun on himself and shot a massive wave of water towards Moltres! The Fire Titan saw the attack coming just in time and dodged, sparing himself a painful blow, then he threw himself at Charizard in an incredibly fast Drill Peck attack. The red dragon moved out of the way, placing himself just a few feet above Misty and her Gyarados, but Moltres changed direction all of a sudden, and it seemed like Charizard was about to be hit... that is, if the firey phoenix had not forgotten about a small, yet important, issue...

"Pikachu... Thunderbolt now!" Ash ordered. The small yellow rodent had been charging up his attack for quite some time, and he was just waiting for an order to unleash it all on his opponent! With a victorious grin, Pikachu concentrated and shot a powerful globular bolt which hit the Legendary Pokemon, knocking him out of his Drill Peck attack and causing him to fall a few feet with an indignant shriek, wide open to more attacks from Ash and Misty's Pokemon!

Ash heard Charizard calling to him with a short grunt... and when he and Pikachu looked at the dragon, as if asking what he meant by that, Charizard answered by pointing below of him, to the back of Misty's Gyarados. For a second, the aspiring Pokemon Master was left dumbfound... then, a cold chill ran through his back when they both understood what Charizard meant by that! "Er... hold on a sec here... Ugh! W... Wait a second, Charizard! You are NOT saying that Pikachu and I should jump down on Gyarados' back, do you?"

"_CHAR!_" Charizard answered with a nod, meaning that, at that point, there wasn't much of a choice. Misty looked up and bravely stood up on Gyarados' back, and her Pokemon slowed down in order not to cause his trainer to fall off...

"Ash! Pikachu! Don't hesitate, Charizard knows what he's doing!" the redhead exclaimed, encouraging their friends to jump off. Only about eight feet of altitude separated Gyarados and Charizard... "Don't worry, I'll be here! I won't let you fall! Quick, before Moltres attacks again!"

Ash glanced down to his first travelling companion... and saw her eyes shining with something that Ash didn't know whether to call determination, fear, or a strange combination of both! There was something in her eyes that impressed Ash, and that caused him to silently praise the young Gym Leader... now more than ever, she looked like the old Misty, so direct, determined and courageous, and sweet at the same time. Just the way he remembered her...

Ash got his act together and looked at both Pikachu and Charizard... then, holding the electric mouse tightly, he slowly descended from his dragon Pokemon's back, feeling as if his stomach was going in his mouth as he began falling! A split second later, he landed on his feet on Gyarados' back, and the mighty sea serpent grunted and lost some altitude, threatening to cause Ash to fall off! The young champion felt his blood run cold and his life flash before his eyes as he saw how far away the ground was, at least one hundred feet below...

But luckily, Misty's strong yet gentle hand shot forward and grabbed Ash's wrist before he could fall!

Pikachu grit his teeth and held tight to Ash's shoulder, pushing with all of his might to get his trainer away from a lethal fall... and luckily, the black-haired boy managed to keep his balance upon Gyarados' back! The three of them, Ash, Misty and Pikachu, flopped down on Gyarados' back, and Ash panted heavily for a while before turning to Misty.

"Phew... wow... that was too close for comfort!" he wheezed. "Thanks... Misty... you really saved our backs!"

"No prob..." Misty answered, sighing and smiling in joy as well. "Told ya, didn't I? I wouldn't... let you fall..."

"_Pikachu pi chu pika pika pi pikachu!_" Pikachu happily squeaked, using one of his little paws to wipe his forehead. Ash caught his breath for a little while still, his eyes affixed on Misty, a strange feeling surfacing for what was probably the first time in his teenage heart. A feeling that he had never felt before, directed towards his first travelling companion. A pleasant feeling, to be sure, but also one that had him puzzled and confused. His heat had begun racing, and his cheeks felt hot... and he somehow understood that he was starting to see Misty in a different way, though he was unclear on the reason about this...

A battle roar interupted his train of thought, and the young champion turned to the place where Charizard and Charla had gone, shooting another double Flamethrower attack at Moltres. The phoenix dodged, but the two dragons quickly separated and avoided his counter, then began flying around him, fast enough to keep Moltres from following both of them. Annoyed, Moltres tried to gain morealtitude, but the two Charizards quickly got closer, spreading their wings and unsheathing their claws...

Just when Moltres seemed about to charge up another Fire Blast and hurl it at his opponent, Charizard and Charla quickly changed direction and threw themselves at the legendary phoenix, who shrieked in surprise when Charizard grabbed him from the front, and Charla held tight to his back; Moltres immediately began thrashing and shrieking to break free of the double hold, and for a moment, Charizard and his beloved feared that the unnaturally strong phoenix would soon manage to break the hold... but they put all of their might in keeping ahold of their opponent, and managed to pin him! As Moltres kept moving and calling out in rage, Charizard and Charla nodded to each other, then shot upwards at incredible speed, dragging the surprised Moltres along with them! Then, all of a sudden, they dropped down and launched themselves towards the earth, darting towards it like a couple of torpedoes, their wings folded on their backs! Moltres let out a long, frightening screech of rage and terror as the ground quickly got closer and closer, and the two Charizards began spinning him around like a drill, executing a spectacular double Seismic Toss...

Then, just ten feet away from the ground, Charizard and Charla let go on Moltres and violently hurled him downwards, not even leaving him the time to scream before he plunged headfirst into the rock! A deafening noise riverberated all around the island as the mighty phoenix impacted on the ground with unimaginable speed and power, and beams of scarlet light erupted all around the place where he had fallen! A whole rocky cliff collapsed and fell into the waves, several trees were knocked down by the shockwave, and the whole Knot Island was shaken by a violent tremor, as small rocks and blazes of fire rose to the heavens in a spectacular and terrifying fire fountain! Ash, Pikachu, Misty, Brock, Gary, Dawn, Phoebe and Team Rocket all remained dumbfound as they watched the result of Charizard and Charla's double Seismic Toss... and even the Pokemon who had come out of their Pokeballs to fight had to stop and watch the scene!

"I... I can't believe this!" the aspiring Pokemon Master exclaimed, his eyes almost springing out of their orbits in amazement. "I dunno what kind of training Charizard did in Charicific Valley... but it sure paid off!"

"_Pika pika..._" Pikachu answered with a nod.

"I can see that he has become a lot stronger... even Gyarados seems to agree with that!" Misty commented as she noticed that her normally fierce and warlike sea serpent was staring at the two Charizards in wide-eyed wonder!

**oooooooooo**

"Ugh... make a report! What's Moltres' status?" J exclaimed after the deafening roar of the explosion had subsided enough. Immediately, the Team Vicious grunts ran back to their assigned positions and tried to assess what had happened, despite the fact that they were all quite shocked at the two Charizards' display of power.

"R... Right away! Moltres has taken a serious blow!" one of her men exclaimed. "We have no idea whether it was enough to weaken him... we're waiting for Moltres' reaction!"

"Alright! For now, exclude the damaged engines and prepare for emergency retreat... but try to remain close enough, we need to monitor Moltres' conditions now!" the silver-haired huntress instructed them. All the grunts nodded and went back to work, as J's thoughts once again went to those kids and to how they had managed to damage her plans once again.

"Ash Ketchum... and his friends... they're a danger to our organization!" she muttered to herself, hoping she could at least salvage something out of this failed operation. "We'll have to make do with whatever we can get away with for now... but if we can't take them out quickly enough, they might prove to be a serious threat..."

**oooooooooo**

Stunned, Brock, Gary and the others had watched Moltres plunge to the unforgiving ground below, shaking Mt. Ember from its foundations and kicking up a gargantuan cloud of dust that had kept the scene completely hidden from their eyes. Thet were all holding their breath, not daring to believe that the last attack had turned the tabled of the battle. They could only wait for the chaos to subside, and see if they had actually won...

Several endless seconds went by in complete silence, before they managed to see something moving inside of the dust cloud... and they all stared in shock as Moltres slowly rose from a huge crater he had created with the impact of his body! The mighty phoenix was swaying from side to side as if drunk, and it was obvious that Charizard and Charla's attack had really done its damage... but he was not down yet, and he seemed thirsty for revenge! His flaming feathers sprayed embers all around him, and his tail angrily whipped the ground behind him...

"Darn... I can't believe he's still standing!" Dawn exclaimed. "That Pokemon is something else entirely..."

Phoebe slightly widened her eyes as Moltres, instead of spreading his wings and attacking again, kept his body wrapped in his wings and looked up, as if he was watching something mysterious only he could see. "Er... hold on a sec, everyone! Something is happening, though I don't know what exactly..." the island girl said.

Just then, Moltres was slowly enveloped in a warm aura of red light emanating from his body like the rays of a miniature sun. It surely was a strange thing to see, and no one of them really remembered anything like that having ever occurred... but somehow, the trainers weren't alarmed, as if they instinctively knew what was going on...

In contrast with his previous rage, Moltres seemed to be almost resigned to his defeat now... and as Ash, Misty and their Pokemon kept watching in curiosity, asking themselves what he was going to do, Moltres finally bowed his head and allowed the strange aura to engulf him completely in some sort of scarlet coccoon. In a few seconds, Moltres was swallowed by a gigantic pillar of red light which shot up towards the cloud-filled skies, red shockwaves radiating from all around it. The egendary Pokemon's mournful call was heard throughout the whole island, and a small, red, shining dot shot out of the pillar of light...

**oooooooooo**

"The target just emitted an high-energy impulse!" A Team Vicious grunt exclaimed when his radar signalled the strange shining object coming out of the pillar of light.

J sighed in resignation. "Then, our primary objective is lost. All thanks to those kids. Alright, then, we'll at least try to get back to the base with something... capture that object!"

Her men were swift to obey, and several of them pressed a combination of buttons on their consoles. Outside, a panel opened up on the vehicle's main body, and a shining beam of silver light came out of it and struck the mysterious bright object, dragging it back towards the damaged flying machine. J's Salamence, who was still fighting outside, saw that the day was lost and, after nimbly dodging an Aura Sphere attack from Dawn's Togekiss, got away from the battle and flew back to the inside of the massive flying machine, not before glaring at his opponents in a silent promise of revenge. Yanmega, Wobbuffet, Drifblim and Mismagius got away from the vehicle's damaged outer hull as Rotom phased back out through the armored plates, a little confused but otherwise unharmed.

Inside, J recalled her Salamence back in his Pokeball as soon as he was back, then looked to one of the control screens, which showed a group of tall cylinders of semi-transparent green glass, which were probably meant to be used to contain the Legendary Pokemon as soon as he had been captured. In one of them, a slab of red marble materialized - a slab about the size of a large book, upon which strange mystical symbols had been engraved.

After making sure they would come out of the battle with at least that consolation prize, J sighed and ordered her men to retreat. "There's nothing more to be done here." she exclaimed. "We have to get away right now. Activate emergency evasion measures, and get back to headquarters."

"Right away, miss J!" one of the masked villains answered. The red alarm lights were soon substituted with a strange silver radiance that engulfed the whole control room...

**ooooooooo**

"Look at that! J's flying machine is doing something strange..." Brock noted. In fact, the enormous machine had begun emitting a strange silvery light, with strange beams of light orbiting all around it. Everyone was getting ready for some more bad news, in case J and his men were about to use another of their dirty tricks... but the tension completely evaporated when, a few seconds and a thunderclap later, the flying machine simply vanished from everybody's sight, and the menacing thunderclouds were blown away as quickly as they had come. The volcanic activity slowly ceased, leaving the island shaken but still mostly intact... and a few silvery sparks continued slowly coming down from the sky. Finally, just like that, everything turned back to normal, as if Knot Island had sighed in relief from the danger it had escaped. Everyone was speechless... and even Phoebe, who had seen her share of incredible things in her life, was at a loss of things to say...

"Is... is it over?" Dawn asked. "Did Moltres really... go away?"

"So it seems..." Jesse murmured. "That... that flying machine just disappeared... and the weather is calming down..."

James and Meowth sighed as they dropped down to their knees in supreme relief. "Well, at least we're safe now..." the feline Pokemon commented. "Though there are a few things I still don't get... maybe, if miss Phoebe would be so kind as to elaborate..."

"Frankly, I'm quite baffled myself..." the Elite Four member admitted, still stupefied. "This is something that never happened before, and truth be told, I don't like the way that huntress' flying machine just disappeared..."

A low, ghostly call resonated from above them, and Phoebe looked up just in time to see her Mismagius, Drifblim and Rotom coming down from the now bright sky, with Togekiss, Crobat, Yanmega, Wobbuffet and Fearow following suit! Each Pokemon flew to his or her own trainer, and was greeted with cheers of gratitude!

"Hey, everyone! Welcome back!" Brock exclaimed as he affectionately greeted his Crobat and rubbed his head. The giant bat screeched in satisfaction, as all the other trainers congratulated their Pokemon for their help.

"Nicely done, Fearow! You did a terrific job of it!" Gary exclaimed as the bird of prey proudly landed on the young researcher's shoulder, and Togekiss received an enthustiastic hug from Dawn.

"Yeah... I don't think many Pokemon can say they've faced a Legendary Pokemon and a flying war machine at the same time, and lived to tell about it!" the blue-haired coordinator cheered. "We've saved this island together... and we kept J from capturing Moltres! I think we can be satisfied!"

"Yeah, guess so..." Jessie answered as she greeted back her Yanmega and Wobbuffet. "Hehehee... good job! Never let it be said that you're useless!"

"_Wobbuffet!_" the Psychic Pokemon answered. James' Mime Jr. covered his mouth with one hand and gently giggled in amusement, then looked up to where Ash, Misty and their Pokemon were...

**oooooooooo**

"We... we did it! We really did it!" Misty sighed, almost flopping down on her Gyarados' back. "I can't believe it... we really scraped through this time!"

"Charizard and Charla were awesome..." Ash replied, with Pikachu nodding in assent as the two dragons were flying back to them, their wings spread out in victory. Staraptor's victorious keening as the huge bird of prey flew alongside Ash and Misty reminded Ash of his other Pokemon who had valliantly fought to save Knot Island. "Staraptor! You're okay too, aren't you? Congratulations, you all did a great job down there!"

"_Staaaaaar!_" the raptor Pokemon screeched victoriously, with Pikachu and both Charizards quickly joining in the celebrations.

"_PI-KA-CHU!_"

"_CHAAAAAAAR!_"

Even Gyarados roared in victory, and Misty thanked him with a caring stroke that the huge sea monster accepted with what could pass as a happy smile! "Hehehee... yeah, that was one heck of a battle! Still... I think its time to get down now! The others must be waiting for us..." Misty said, winking at Ash and hoping he wouldn't notice the blush creeping on her face.

Ash and Pikachu smiled brightly and nodded... and Gyarados grunted an affirmative himself and began descending, while the rest of the team was already greeting them enthusiastically...

**oooooooooo**

"This is crazy... I can't believe those guys managed to defeat Mltres and rout those criminals... and those two Charizards were really something else!"

"_Might! MIGHT!_"

"Yeah, Night Sky, I know that..." the black-clad girl answered as she caressed her Mightyena on the head. "There must be something special about those guys! If they could handle Moltres and stop this disaster... we should keep an eye out for them, because they might surprise us quite a bit! Okay, I'll report this to the Sevii League, those guys might be our best hope of stopping those criminals and shed some light on this mystery..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And so ends the battle with Moltres... again, our favourite Pokemon trainer manage to win the day and save Knot Island and possibly all of Sevii Islands from a fiery doom! However, it seems that J did not leave empty-handed after all... she and her minions still managed to get something out of Moltres. But at least they won't be able to count on Moltres' massive firepower, and J's flying fortress has taken quite a beating in the process. It seems we'll have a moment of respite from them... but for our friends, the adventures will start again soon, as the rest of the Sevii Islands calls for them!**

**Still, we'll get a couple chapters of denouement for the whole Knot Island mess, and there is another spectacular Pokemon battle in the works! See you next time! **


	18. Snowed In

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Welcome back to the usual appointment with my fanfiction! I could see that my readers were very satisfied with last chapter's battle, and I'm glad I was able to deliver! Though I'm now worried that the rest of the Sevii Islands saga might not be up to par... but I'll still try to do my best nonetheless!**

**This will be a more relaxed chapter... at least, if we look at Ash and his friends' side of things, because Zoey and her friends are about to find themselves in trouble soon enough, and Team Vicious will soon be rearing its ugly head again. The fact that Ash foiled their plans at Knot Island isn't going to slow them down too much, and they will soon move to other targets.**

**But for now, I guess Ash and his friends deserve to kick back and enjoy their free time. Of course, it won't be long before he and his Pokemon get to fight a new battle, so you action fans will just have to be a little patient!**

**And for the shipping fans... hope you liked the Pokeshipping hints I dropped in the last chapter! I will take things rather slowly in that regard... but I think you'll like the brief moments I will put in from time to time!**

**Anyway... enjoy the new chapter, and hope you can leave a few reviews! And hope you like what I had in mind for Damien! ^^**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 18 - Snowed In**

After a fair bit of what Maylene would have called 'diplomatic persausion', Zoey, Maylene and Candice had followed a long winding path taking straight to the criminal group's headquarters, deep in the heart of Mt. Coronet. Team Vicious, that was the group's name... to hear it like that, it sounded like the name of your run-of-the-mill organization of Pokemon criminals who seemed to be sprouting like mushrooms around the world lately, and that were usually eradicated in a few weeks' time, before they could become really dangerous. Unfortunately, judging from their methods and their aims, this didn't sound like the kind of two-bit organization that normal police and Officers Jenny were capable of handling. The three cronies the girls had just defeated were obviously low-level thugs, but Zoey and her friends knew they were going to meet much worse, very soon...

In fact, both Zoey and Candice suspected Team Vicious was already following their movements, thanks to that out-of-place Noctowl they had noticed mere minutes before... so, the walk to the hideout had been slow and methodic, with frequent stops in order to make sure the Team Vicious grunts had not set up an ambush. Up until then, the red-haired coordinator and her friends had not met with any problem, but they knew all too well that it could all change in a moment...

Still, up until that particular moment, there had been no problem... and after one hour of carefully following the path they had been directed to, Zoey and her friends finally reached a large opening in the side of an enormous rocky cliff, a snow-covered path going right inside of the cavern. Footprints of both humans and Pokemon could be seen going inside the opening, along with signs of other objects being dragged in from the outside... which, for the girls, was definite proof that they had found what they were searching for. Still, Zoey and Candice were too prudent to believe that entering would be that easy...

"So... this is the place those goons told us about, huh?" Maylene asked, suspiciously examining the footprints leading to the inside of the cave. Her first instinct would probably have been to barge in and just let loose with her Machoke, Lucario and fighting skills, but she wasn't as reckless as to actually follow up on that.

Candice slowly nodded. "That's right, Maylene... though Candice has a bad feeling about this. It has been all too easy to get here, and Candice thinks we'll get a nasty surprise very soon." Snowpoint City's Gym Leader said. She was itching for a chance to pay back those who had thrown her city into chaos and fear, but she knew that charging head-on would have been a bad idea.

"There are no guards... and aside from those three goons, and that Noctowl sentry, we have met nobody out to stop us." Zoey thought out loud. "I think it's obvious they're trying to lull us into a false sense of security. We need to get around them and catch them off guard. If only we could find a passageway, somewhere around here..."

Just then, the redhead saw Maylene motioning for her friends to look in the direction she was pointing at. "Hey, girls! Come here, I think I found a way around this problem!" the young martial artist whispered: right in front of her, there was a narrow road that, starting from the ground level, climbed its way up the rocky cliff and to a smaller cave, well-hidden behind a group of snow-covered pine trees. Zoey and Candice guessed it might have been a secondary passage, used by the criminal group in dangerous situations... and maybe, their enemies had already calculated the possibility that an intruder could use that passage to sneak up on them. And yet, it still presented itself as a good idea. Had they played their cards well enough, they might have slipped through that passage and caught Team Vicious by surprise. The risks were obvious, but it sounded like a more reasonable idea than just taking the more obvious entrance and fall into a trap...

"What do you say, Zoey, Candice? You think we can climb our way up there and get inside?" Maylene asked as the three girls took a good look at the secondary entrance. It was about fifteen-twenty feet above them, and it was unguarded as well...

"Hmm..." Zoey thought carefully about the idea. "Yeah, it might give us a chance to sneak in, but we still need to be careful about it. Let's keep one of out Pokemon out, just in case..."

"Alright..." Candice answered as she let her strongest Pokemon - her elegant and beautiful Glaceon - out. The Ice-type Eevee evolution appeared in front of her, azure fur shining in the sun. Maylene's Breloom, a bizzarre Grass / Fighting Pokemon similar to a cross between a kangaroo and a lizard, with a mushroom-like hat on her head, appeared alongside Glaceon, while Zoey sent out her Ninetales. All the Pokemon emitted their call, and stood ready to receive orders from their respective trainers.

"Right, guys, we have almost reached those criminals' hideout." Zoey said, pointing at the secondary entrance. Ninetales, Breloom and Glaceon immediately followed the red-haired coordinator' glance, and the nine-tailed fox narrowed her eyes a little at the sight of the opening in the bare rock. "However, we suspect we might fall into a trap, so we'd rather have you come with us and watch out for a surprise attack. Are you okay with this arrangement?"

"_Tales!_" the white fox nodded. Her thick, elegant tails were raised over her head, and a bluish flame was burning on each tip. Even Breloom and Glaceon nodded, and the three girls smiled at them in gratitude, before the small party began climbing their way up the impervious road to the top.

It was not easy to get there - the rocky path was encrusted with ice and solidified snow, and more than once the girls,Ninetales and Breloom had to slow down and proceed carefully in order to avoid a painful fall. Luckily, or maybe suspiciously, nobody tried to attack them during their climb, and thegirls were able to reach the opening and sneak in without problems.

Zoey placed her index finger in front of her mouth, in order to tell her friends and their Pokemon to be as quiet as possible, and the Gym Leaders nodded before following their friend through a dark corridor digging through stone and ice, heading to the innermost part of the mountain. It was getting warmer, and even in the partial darkness of the corridor, it was possible to see some pipes hanging on the walls, which confirmed that someone was in fact living in that place. Candice thought that this, at the very least, meant that they hadn't gone all hat way for nothing...

The corridor ended soon, taking the girls into a wide, completely empty room with a floor made of levigated marble, which shone dimly in the darkness. No doubt about it... they had gone straight into the lion's den, and Zoey felt a shiver run down her spine, but she managed to keep her cool.

The girls and their Pokemon looked around themselves in order to decide where they should go from there... and Zoey's Ninetales sniffed the air suspiciously, before widening her eyes and straightening her ears in alarm as she felt something sweet and pungent in the air. The nine-tailed fox quickly turned to her trainer and pulled at her sleeve to draw her attention.

Zoey turned to her Fire-type Pokemon, wondering what the matter was, and even Maylene, Candice, Breloom and Glaceon felt like there was something amiss. It all became clear one split second later, as the black-haired Gym Leader looked up to see a strange, ethereal golden dust slowly falling upon her and her friends, as light as feathers in the wind!

With a bad feeling about this, Candice looked more carefully... and much to her dismay, she saw a group of Vileplume standing above them, balancing on a group of boards hanging to the ceiling! The flower-like Grass / Poison Pokemon, well known for their wide variety of available status-changing moves, were showering the team with their Sleep Powder attack!

Zoey and Maylene quickly understood they had fallen into a trap as well and, in a moment of fear, they tried to cover their noses and mouths and get away from that insidious dusty rain... but the pollen had already been absorbed by their skin, and their movements were getting more sluggish already. Even their Pokemon had no time to attempt anything... and soon enough, one after the other, they lay down on the ground and succumbed to sleep. Zoey, Candice and Maylene were able to remain standing a little longer, desperately looking for a way out... but it was all in vain, and they soon had to give up their struggle as well. First Maylene, then Candice... and finally Zoey, who up to the last tried to get away from the shower of soporiferous pollen.

"Ugh... Darn..." the redhead muttered, clawing at the ground as if that could help her stay awake. "I'm such a fool... I never even... considered... they could pull... such a... trick..."

Then, it all became black, and Zoey slipped into slumberland as well.

**oooooooooo**

"So, what's the situation? Have you caught those meddling girls as well?"

A Team Vicious grunt stood at attention as soon aas he heard his boss' imperious voice... the voice of a rotund, corpulent man sitting at his desk, half-hidden behind plates of inviting dishes, and seemingly more interested in satisfying his own hunger than in taking care of the intruders. His words were paused from time to time by the noises he made while gulping down his food.

"Er... yes, sir, we have caught them right now! Putting those Vileplume guards near our side entrance was a great idea!" the grunt answered. "All three of them have been neutralized, their Pokemon included. Now, commander Jakov, what do you propose we do with them? Shall we eliminate them?"

The large man sitting at the desk laughed rudely as he stood up from his seat, revealing himself as a fat man with very short black hair, two greedy coffee-colored eyes and a large, red-tinted nose. "Hahahahaaa! That's why you are but mere grunts while I, Jakov, am a Team Vicious commander!" he laughed. "Eliminate those three? Do you have any idea who they are? Two of them are Sinnoh Gym Leaders, though I think one of them should have her licence revoked after the beating she took from that purple-haired guy! And the third one, that tall redhead, scored second place in the Sinnoh Grand Festival. You know what that means, right? If we forced them to work for us, can you imagine how much more powerful Team Vicious would become? We'd be unstoppable, and more Legendary Pokemon would soon fall in our hands!"

It was all logical enough, of course... but the grunt seemed to have more common sense than the norm for such individuals, and he wasn't sure things would have gone that smoothly. As Jakov reached towards one of his plates and grabbed a cheeseburger, before taking a huge bite out of it, the grunt raised one hand to ask a question. "Er... commander Jakov, I see your point, but... isn't that a bit of a risk?" he asked. "I mean, if they really are that good, and also that well-known in the world of competitons... I don't think they'll be pleased by our offer..."

Jakov gulped down his bite and laughed again. "Hahahahaaa! Nonsense, we just have to tell them that the alternative will be death, and they will become all nice and obedient! That's just how people are... their own lives are more important to them than anything else, and they're ready to betray their friends, their family and their ideals in order to save their own skin!" he exclaimed, as a Noctowl flew in from an opening in the ceiling and quietly roosted on Jakov's large shoulder. "Oh, welcome back, my friend! You did an excellent job warning us of those meddling kids! Now we've caught all three of them!"

Noctowl thanked him with a low, quiet hoot, and Jakov slowly nodded and turned to the grunt once again. "Very well... now, get those kids and take them to... our room for special guests!" he ordered. "I'd like to chat a little with them, as soon as they wake up!"

The grunt saluted, despite not being that convinced. "Yes, sir!" he hastily exclaimed, before walking out of the office. As soon as he was out, Jakov sighed and sat back on his chair, scratching his Noctowl under the chin with one of his coarse fingers.

"That's the way it is... people are selfish, and they don't care about anything that doesn't concern them... their lives are the most important thing, for all of them." the Team Vicious commander murmured, a hint of bitterness and sadness in his voice, as he regarded the delicious dishes in front of him. His Noctowl tilted his head sideways, with what could be read as confusion or compassion... then, Jakov shrugged and went back to his eating exercises!

"You want some, Noctowl?" he asked his Pokemon, handing him a large sausage. "It's delicious! Our chef has really outdone himself, this time!"

The owl Pokemon thanked him with a low, spooky hoot and began happily munching on the sausage...

**oooooooooo**

Knot Island had been quite shaken by the terrifying events that had just happened... and while Ash and his team, now including Charizard and Charla - and excluding Team Rocket who, as soon as things were back to normal, had gone away saying that, now that their alliance was over, they would be back for Pikachu soon - were heading back to the town, they could very well feel the confusion and fear still lingering around. People were fearfully returning to the homes they had left behind, and wild Pokemon slowly resurfacing from their lairs, almost not daring to believe that the catastrophe had ended just as quickly as it had begun. And in fact, just by looking at Knot Island's clear blue sky, it was almost impossible to believe that, only a scant few minutes before, a legendary Pokemon was rampaging through the island, burning down everything it encountered. Only the burnt, twisted remains of several trees and the blots of cinder covering the surrounding hills suggested how the mighty Fire Titan had unleashed his fury upon it... but luckily, Ash and his friends' quick intervention had kept things from ending in complete disaster, and now they were heading back to the city, tired yet proud of their victory.

"I have to say, you were really something out there!" Phoebe commented as the team made their way down a twisted path on Mt. Ember's western side. "I never imagined Ash's Charizard and his companion would be capable of fighting a being such as Moltres... that means Ash is a fisrt-rate Pokemon trainer! If your Charizard has become so powerful under your guidance..."

"Well, miss Phoebe, the truth is... I haven't been training Charizard, as of late, at least, not personally." the black-haired boy answered, rubbing the back of his head embarassedly. "The truth is, up until now, Charizard has been living in Charicific Valley, in Johto, to train himself and become stronger... because I had seen he had fallen behind, compared to others of his kind. Anyway... well, I can see all that training wasn't wasted, huh?"

"_CHARRRRR!_" the mighty dragon roared, a gout of flame spouting out of his maws before he looked at Charla, who smiled cunningly and nodded. No prizes for guess under whose vigilance he had trained...

Phoebe used her hand to comb her black hair and put the flower in her hair back in place. "I understand... well, anyway, it was still an impressive show of strength and skill, from all of you! I don't think it would have been that easy for me to defeat J and her men, if I didn't have you guys backing me up! And your idea of sending Rotom to screw up the machine's engines, Dawn, was just what we needed!" she commented.

"Don't underrate yourself, miss Phoebe..." Gary commented with a small smile. "Those guys were a bunch of jesters, it was nothing we couldn't handle."

Dawn sighed. "Anyway, it was a pleasure for us to help you out... it's just that I was thinking..." she said, rubbing her chin with a finger. "I mean, now that J and most of her men have escaped, we still have to deal with those remaining here... especially that Damien guy."

Ash frowned and nodded thoughtfully. With all that had happened, he had almost forgotten about that guy, but now that there were no more Legendary Birds wandering around, he had all the time to think about such details. Pikachu, Misty and Brock looked at him, wondering about what he had in mind to do... and Misty wrinkled her nose as she saw Ash grinning, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Hmm, now that I think about it..." he mused to himself, before motioning for Charizard to come closer... which the red dragon did, an interrogative expression on his face.

"Ouch... I know that grin from when we travelled together..." Misty said. "He's got something shady in mind, I know that..."

A rather surprised Phoebe watched as Ash began whispering something in Charizard's ear, and at first the fire dragon appeared not to understand what his trainer was thinking himself... but one second later, Charizard's eyes widened in surprise, incredulity and rage, all at the same time! He stepped away from Ash, then spread his wings and took flight towards the other side of the mountain, roaring in determination! Pikachu shook his head and squeaked, not daring to believe what he had just seen...

"Heheheee... c'mon, Pikachu, don't act all surprised!" the young boy commented. "I just wanted to teach that guy a lesson... and Charizard deserved a shot at getting his revenge, didn't he?"

"_Pikachu..._" the unconvinced electric mouse said, shrugging and turning to the rest of Ash's team. "_Pika pi, pika chu pika pika pikachu... Pikachu pichu pika pika pichu!_"

"What?" Misty exclaimed in wide-eyed wonder... then, slowly at first, and with ever-growing enthusiasm, Cerulean City's Gym Leader began giggling, bursting into full-out laughter a few moments later! Charla and Brock were chuckling themselves... while Gary, Dawn and Phoebe were just as surprised as Misty had been, and they were wondering what Ash had whispered to Charizard.

"Well, I can explain that." Brock answered. "You see, that Damien guy was the trainer Charizard belonged to when he was just a Charmander. Damien abandoned him because he thought Charmander was too weak... and now, Ash suggested that Charizard take his revenge!"

"What?" a very amused Phoebe exclaimed. "Oh, dear... what's Charizard going to do now? I don't think that, even if so much time went by, he has forgotten what Damien did to him! I hope he doesn't do anything... too reckless, that's all!"

"Heh, don't worry about that, miss Phoebe! Charizard won't hurt him... too much! At worst, he'll give him a good scare!" Ash answered with a good-natured wave of his hand. "In a few minutes, Charizard will be back, and Damien will have to buy a new pair of trousers! Heheheee..."

"Heh, what a guy... you really haven't changed much since the last time I saw you, Ashy-boy!" Gary chuckled. "Well, guess that scoundrel asked for it anyway! Meanwhile, I think we should look around and see if there aren't more problems. This eruption has done quite a number on this island..."

"We can see that..." Brock commented as he looked around, mounds of molten rock littering the earth around them. The magma was cooling down, and it would have ceased to be a danger in a few minutes... but the island had stillbeen damaged quite a bit, and the area around the mountain would need some time before it could be repopulated. Brock was about to comment on that, when something strange drew his attention... a slight movement in the proximities of a large rock, obviously a Pokemon who was trying to get away from the scorched clearing. Judging from its pacing, it was clear that the Pokemon had been injured and was not able to get away quickly.

"Over there, everybody!" Misty said as she pointed to the rocks. "I think there's an injured Pokemon down there..."

"Yeah, we see that..." Brock answered, already climbing his way down to the Pokemon and carefully moving around the blocks of cooling-down lava, who were already beginning to blacken and solidify. The other trainers climbed down as well, hoping to be able to do something for the injured Pokemon... who, as Brock found out just then, turned out to be a battle-scarred, fierce-looking Rhyhorn dragging one of his hind legs, a visible burn mark engraved upon his rock-hard skin. The telltale scar on his horn was a dead giveaway - it was the very same Rhyhorn who had tried to attack them as they were climbing their way up Mt. Ember, and that Phoebe and her Ghost Pokemon had chased away!

As Brock stood watching, surprised by that chance encounter, Rhyhorn recognized the small team of trainers and growled in rage, trying to stand on all fours to charge at them and attempt to avenge his earlier humiliation. But he stumbled and grunted in pain as soon as he tried to put weight on his injured rear paw, and ended up sprawled on the ground again. He stood up again and tried another time, but he only managed two steps before giving in to the pain and laying down.

Brock quickly moved and reached the rocky beast, who was still trying to drag himself towards those he considered enemies and invaders. "Wait, Rhyhorn... don't do this, you'd only make things worse by putting weight on that leg!" Brock warned. The stone rhino grunted in athreatening gesture, but the young Rock-type trainer wasn't intimidated, and simply slowed down a little, holding his hands in front of himself in order to convince the enraged Pokemon to calm down.

"Please, stay calm, Rhyhorn... there!" Brock said as he motioned to Ash and the others to stay back, as not to upset the injured Pokemon. "Don't be afraid... my friends and I don't want to hurt you... we just want to help you. But we can only do that if you let us, you know that, right? Come now, stay calm... and trust us. I know you're afraid, and you have a rigt to be... but we don't want to hurt you, really!"

Rhyhorn stepped back and grunted again... but Brock could see that he had mellowed down a little, and it seemed that the mighty beast wanted to believe those humans surrounding him could help him... however, his natural instinct and personal pride kept him from fully dropping his guard. For several seconds, the Ground / Rock Pokemon and Pewter City's former Gym Leader stood there, looking at each other... Rhyhorn armed with his threatening glare, and Brock extending a hand towards him in an offer of aid and friendship. Rhyhorn was still undecided, and in order to further prove his good intentions, Brock produced the Pokeball belonging to his latest Pokemon and opened it with a light touch of his index finger. Immediately, a cute happy-looking pink Pokemon popped out - the kind yet strong Happiny Brock had gotten at a Pokemon cosplay competition. The cute pink creature raised her stubby arms and approached the injured Rhyhorn, who had now lost much of his aggressive demeanor, and was now looking at Happiny with curiosity. His eyes, who up until then had been serrated in a threatening glare, softened, and the stone rhinoceros sighed and allowed the pink creature to come closer and treat his wound...

**oooooooooo**

Elsewhere on Knot Island, a familiar young man wearing the Team Vicious uniform was angrily making his way through the mostly undamaged tropical forest surrounding Mt. Ember, taking care to avoid the places scorched by the lava. Damien was still bitter about his defeat - once again, that bunch of busybodies had come to ruin his day, and as if that wasn't enough, J had abandoned him after using him as a distraction to stop her enemies' advancement. Such an occasion, wasted like that... he swore to himself that he wouldn't be humiliated like that, not anymore! As soon as he was back to home base, he would ask his boss for stronger and better Pokemon, and then he would track down and defeat Ash Ketchum and his friends, wherever they went. Nobody made a fool of the great Damien and got away with it! Soon, they would all get what was coming to them... he would have crushed them with his strongest Pokemon!

"Curse you, Ash Ketchum... and curse that annoying carrot-top!" the young Team Vicious grunt muttered, throwing his helmet to the ground and kicking it away. "It's all your fault if I couldn't become a great Pokemon trainer! You took my Charmander away, and you made a fool out of me... but don't think you've won just yet! I swore I would defeat you... and I WILL defeat you! As soon as the boss gives me some stronger Pokemon, I will bury you and become famous! Heh, the great trainer who defeated Ash Ketchum, winner of the Sinnoh conference! I can already imagine my face on all newspapers!"

Damien was so busy blaming everything but himself for his defeat and thinking up a plan for revenge, that he didn't notice the ominous winged shadow looming down upon him until it was too late. As Damien breathed in again after his tirade, he looked down... and remained perplexed when he saw the reptilian form, complete with an elongated, almost feline, head and a flaming tail flying overhead...

Several feet above him, Charizard had zeroed in on his target. Four long years had gone by ever since he had almost died because of his misplaced trust in that scoundrel, back when he was a young, inexperienced Charmander... but while his clothes were completely different, he could never forget those blue-purplish hair and that smug, self-important expression...

Charizard shivered in rage, as he tried to keep at bay his first instinct of swooping down and maul Damien. He held himself back, reasoning that there was no need to dirty his hands too much on that pathetic bully... just leaving him a reminder that his nastiness had not been forgotten was going to be enough!

The dragon breathed in... then, he grinned and used a weak Ember attack, breathing out a small scarlet flame that darted through the air and struck the end of Damien's trousers, setting his rear end on fire!

"AAAAAAARGH!" Damien's eyes bugged out comically as he started running down the small hill, screaming like a little girl as flames and black smoke enveloped his buttocks! Charizard chuckled in grim satisfaction as he watched his former trainer desperately running away, and felt a fulfilling sense of revenge in seeing him humiliated like that. Then, the dragon turned back and began returning to his real trainer, leaving Damien to his fate...

...which at the moment consisted of darting down the hill slope with his butt on fire, searching for some relief!

"HELP! WATER! HELP!" Damien screamed, exaggerated waterfalls of tears streaming down his eyes, and flames darting behind him like a Rapidash's tail! Luckily for him, he found a small stream running between a paiir of rocks, untouched by the eruption. He quickly reached it and sat down, causing the flames to be quenched in a satisfying puff of white vapor and a shrieking sound of cooling down! A peaceful expression painted itself on Damien's face, as the boy remained seated to enjoy the fresh water...

And quickly stood up again, screaming in pain as a particularly foul-tempered Krabby grabbed his buttocks with his claws!

"Aieeeeee! No waaaay! Why does this happen to meeeee?" Damien whined as he began to run away again, the crab Pokemon still latching upon him...

**oooooooooo**

Somedistance away from the place where Brock and his friends were treating the injured Rhyhorn, Team Rocket was setting up their hot air balloon once again, ready to take flight again. After getting some rest and staying away from the action for a short while, they would be back for Pikachu, and perhaps for some other interesting Pokemon...

"Phew... that was really too close for confort, guys! I swear, if I never met that overgrown roast chicken again, it would still be too soon!" James sighed. "And luckily he didn't have his little friends with him, this time..."

"At least we got away in one piece once again, and we helped the twerps save this island... and let's face it, would have been kinda hard to catch Pikachu with those masked guys raining on our parade!" Meowth affirmed. "And with that Charizard around, no less!"

"We'll just have to wait for another chance!" Jessie shrugged. "For the moment, the last thing I want is to remain on this island any longer! So, James, have you set up our ballloon?"

"I'm almost there, Jessie! I just need to inflate it, and we're good to go!" the azure-haired young man said, tiredly wiping his forehead. He couldn't wait to get away from Knot Island and reach some quieter place... but before James could begin inflating the balloon, he caught a glimpse of something red and shining slowly advancing towards him. Alarmed, the young man quickly turned around with a brief shout, fearing that some residual lava had surfaced...

"Ah! What... what's that?" James shouted, alerting Jessie and Meowth as well...

The three of them wee quite flabbergasted to see that, rather than a rivulet of lava, it was a small, kind-eyed Slugma who was slithering towards James and looking at him in an almost begging way, leaving a small trail of cooling-down magma behind her. Still, recognizing the kind of Pokemon was not enough to calm down Team Rocket, who still remembered a nasty encounter with a Magcargo in the caves of Mt. Ember...

"Argh! It's another one of those..." James exclaimed in fear, not wanting to be on the receiving end of another Flamethrower! He chuckled nervously and tried to soothe the fiery Pokemon, waving his hand in an apologetic way. "Er... Hello, little Slugma... um... y'see, about what happened in the cavern, down there... well, I'd like to say that it was all just a misunderstanding!"

"Heheheheee... that's... that's it, exactly!" Jessie backed him up. "I... er... I mistook your boss... or your Mom... or whatever she was... for a stone, and I kicked her... if I knew, I wouldn't have done that, really! Let's... not talk about it anymore, okay? Let bygones be..."

"Hey, hold on a sec! That Slugma doesn't look like she's angry at all, ya know?" Meowth stated as he pointed at the slug-like Pokemon... who had just begun rubbing herself on the azure haired boy's leg, like an affectionate cat! "Kinda looks like she's fond of Jamey-boy... hey, now I get it! That's the Slugma you and Mime Jr. saved back there, James! I think she wants to thank you..."

"Huh? What do you mean..." James murmured, as he looked at the strange Fire-type Pokemon. Somehow, her body, seemingly made of molten rock, wasn't scalding the young Team Rocket member...

And one second later, one of James' Pokeballs snapped open... and out came the vivacious Mime Jr., who somersaulted through the air and landed near Slugma, calling her with a gesture of his hand!

"_Mime, mime!_"

"_Slug?_"

"_Mime mime mime, mime mi!_"

"_Ma! Slug slugma slug, slugma!_"

Meowth intently listened to the strange conversation between Pokemon... and when he looked up at Jessie and James, who apparently were waiting for a translation, his expression was just as confused as theirs were! "Er... Mime Jr. is having a nice chat with this... cute little slug... and she's saying that, to thank you for saving her life, she'd like you, Jamey-boy, to add her to your Pokemon team! She just decided you're her hero..."

"M-me?" James exclaimed, his eyes bugging out in amazement! He would never have imagined he'd become anyone's hero... and Jessie rubbed her forehead to calm down the headache she was getting from all of this!

"Oh, dear..." the girl muttered. "Now James, of all people, gets to become a hero! Five bucks says he gets a big head about this..."

In fact, the young man was getting somewhat self-important about all that, and his stupefied expression had left way to a more self-assured one. "Er... well, yeah, modestly speaking, I tried to do my best, and my Mime Jr. here did help me out a lot! Heheheee... but to call me a hero is kinda stretching it, don't ya think so, little Slugma? What about your friends, aren't they looking for you now?"

Slugma seemed to smile, her large eyes turning to a large rocky clearing in the proximities... upon which Team Rocket saw a group of Slugma, led by the very same Magcargo that had attacked Team Rocket in Mt. Ember's maze, standing there and looking at them with gratitude rather than resentment!

"_Magcaaaaar! Go, Magcargo!_" the lava snail exclaimed, bobbing her head from side to side. "_Magcar magcargo, mag!_"

"Er..." Meowth began to translate. "She's saying... that they're all thankful for how we saving their 'little sister'... and that they allowed her, at her request, to join James' team! They also said that they wish us good luck..."

"Well, for once we get to be the heroes, instead of blasting off again!" Jessie said. "Guess we need to thank you this time, James! Saving that Slugma was a brilliant move!"

James smiled proudly before producing a Pokeball and pointing it at the small Slugma. "If that's the case, little Slugma, and your friends are okay with it... welcome in my team! I'll be happy to take you along!"

"_Slugma!_" the small lava slug chirped enthusiastically before a small beam of light came from James' Pokeball and touched her, absorbing her inside the sphere. The ball moved around a little, but since Slugma had voluntarily let James catch her, it soon ceased moving, and one more Pokemon joined the young Team Rocket member's collection!

"Yay! Awesome!" James exclaimed, holding his Pokeball high in the air. "Now I have a Slugma in my team! Am I great or what?"

He was answered with a small round of applause by Jessie, Meowth and Mime Jr., before everyone went back to setting up their hot air balloon. "What should I say, James... this time, you really did a great job! But let's not waste too much time here, okay? We still have a mission to accomplish, remember?"

"Of course I do, Jessie!" James answered as he gave a thumbs-up. "Right then... thank you very much, Slugmas, Magcargo! We'll take good care of your little sister, we give you our word for it!"

"_SLUGMA!_" the Fire-type Pokemon answered, happily jumping up and down.

"_Magcargo!_" the giant lava snail echoed as Team Rocket waved at her and her companions.

"Hehehee... it sure feels good to be heroes, just this once!" Meowth thought out loud. "But... let's not forget what our objective is! We're still Team Rocket, and we're part of Kanto's most feared criminal team! We won't give up until Pikachu is in our hands, and I'll have brought down that stupid Persian!"

**oooooooooo**

When Charizard flew back to Ash and his team, warmly greeted by everyone but mostly Ash, Pikachu and Charla... Brock and Happiny had finally managed to gain enugh of Rhyhorn's trust to allow Brock to come closer and treat his paw. Chansey's pre-evolved form had used her Hardboiled move to create a cooked egg right in her hands, and had given it to Rhyhorn to eat, so that he could regain his strength, while Brock used a spray medicine on Rhyhorn's burn.

"Hey, Charizard!" Ash greeted as soon as his champion landed with a clap of his wings. "So, have you given Damien what he deserved?"

The fire-breathing lizard smiled fiercely and nodded, while Misty sighed in resignation. "Anyone ever told you, Ash, that you're a scoundrel? Still, I'd be lying if I said I feel sorry for the guy..." Misty commented cheekily.

"Yeah, I agree with that! The guy makes Paul look nice, I swear!" Dawn answered. "As for the rest... Brock and Happiny have almost finished treating Rhyhorn! It was nothing serious, really... though Rhyhorn should thank his hard-rock skin, or he would be crippled right now. It was a gout of hot lava, after all..."

Charizard and Charla joined the group as they looked at the medics taking care of the rhinoceros Pokemon, who had by then completely renounced all aggressiveness, and was almost completely relaxed. After spraying the burn medicine on Rhyhorn's paw, Brock wiped his forehead and looked up. "It's alright, everyone! Rhyhorn will be okay soon, and he will be able to go back to his everyday life!"

"That's good news, Brock." Phoebe answered with a nod. "Still... it seems to me that Rhyhorn has a different idea!"

"_RHY!_" the rhinoceros Pokemon grunted, two small clouds of steam exiting his nostrils in order to draw attention. "_Rhyhorn, rhy... Rhy! Horn!_"

"_Happy?_" a perplexed Happiny asked. "_Happiny, happi happi ni?_"

"_Pika pichu pika chu pika pika chuuu..._" Pikachu said to the trainers. They weren't able to completely understand Pokemon language, but the gist of it was clear enough.

"From what I understand, Rhyhorn wants to repay Brock in some way." Gary stated. "It's a bit of a personal honor thing, considering Brock helped him..."

"So now he wants to be the one helping out Brock and his friends." Phoebe concluded... before placing a hand on her head and laughing goofily! "Hehehee... well, before you ask, no, I didn't read his mind or anything! It's just that... I have some experience with this kind of Pokemon: they're warriors deep down, and I understand their way of thinking!"

"We have some experience with that ourselves, right, Dawn?" Misty asked her new friend, keeping an eye on Ash, Gary and Charizard.

Dawn giggled amusedly. "You're right, Misty... I saw how Ash really give it his all to win in the Sinnoh league!" she stated. Now that she thought of it, she wondered where Paul might have gone. As much of an unpleasant person he might be, he certainly wasn't one who gave up that easily.

"_Charrr..._" Even Charla seemed to agree with that, crossing her front paws on her chest and expressively looking at her beloved, who reacted by becoming red - well, even redder than he already was - and turning away, as if saying he was not having that conversation!

Brock chuckled and placed his hand on Rhyhorn's head, near his largest scar. "Very well then, Rhyhorn... if you're okay with it, you can join my Pokemon team! I just happen to have a free space... and I'm sure you'll get along very well with the others!" he told his newest Pokemon.

"_Horn!_" Rhyhorn finally grunted, feeling that his life was about to get a lot more interesting...

**oooooooooo**

The first thing that met Zoey's eyes as soon as she woke up was a blinding light being flashed directly in her eyes, and the redhead moaned in annoyance before trying to get up... only to be greeted with a sharp pain in her wrists as she felt something binding her to something she couldn't see, and something abrasive scratching her skin. Finally, she was able to open her eyes and look around herself.

"Ugh... darn..." she murmured, trying to understand where she was. One second later, she remembered what happened when she and her friends had attempted to sneak inside Team Vicious' hideout, and shook her head in order to clear it. "Candice... Maylene... girls, where are you?"

"Oh, very well! Even the third princess finally woke up! I was getting a little restless!" a baritone, adipose voice commented. Zoey's vision finally cleared, and that was when she discovered that she had been tied by her wrists to a metal pole jutting out of a wall, right above her head. She was kneeling on a cold linoleum floor, and standing in front of her was a group of intimidating individuals wearing helmets that looked like gas masks and black uniforms with a mirrored R enblazoned on their chests... the same outfit as the three opponents she and her friends had faced on their way to the hideout! Leading the small group was the man who had just spoken, who wore a similar but more decorated uniform, and whose unhealthy physique was well evident! And one didn't even have to look very far to understand the reason for his large size: judging from the double hamburger he was snacking on, he didn't look like the kind of person who worried about his weight.

And what about Candice and Maylene? Where had they gone to?

"Zoey!" the small Fighting-type Gym Leader's voice came from Zoey's right, and the redhead quickly turned, relieved to see both her and Candice with their hands tied to iron bars fixed to the walls. It seemed that the Team Vicious grunt hadn't even bothered to take away their Pokemon - and in fact, without the use of their hands, the girls couldn't call upon them.

"Zoey, are you okay?" Candice asked in worry. Still feeling a little dizzy, Zoey slowly nodded... and that was when the obese man, petting a Noctowl that was perched on his shoulder, started speaking.

"You can greet each other later, girls... before you do that, you should listen to my proposal! My name is Jakov, and I'm one of Team Vicious' top executives. I have a modest proposal for you, and believe me, you'd do well to accept it!" he said, his greedy eyes going from one girl to the other.

Candice grit her teeth in rage, and tried to turn away when the repellent-looking man approached her. "A... proposal, you say? And why should we accept? If you're Team Vicious, then you're the ones who caused that avalanche, the one who hit my hometown!" she shouted in fury. "I don't see we should agree to help you!"

Jakov shrugged off the implicit threat. "Oh, I'm sure you'll soon change your mind, little Candice... because, you see, I forgot to mention that refusing is not an option here! My idea is for you to join us and help us capture the famed Legendary Pokemon, Registeel, Regirock and Regice... another step for Team Vicious towards our goal of world domination! The alternative to joining us, I regret to say, would be your death. I'd say it's an easy choice, isn't it?"

"Wh... what?" Zoey murmured, her eyes widening. The stakes had suddently gotten much higher than she had thought...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And there you have it! What will Ash and his friends do, before their journey through the Sevii archipelago? Will Team Rocket have more success, now that Slugma has joined James' team? And can Zoey and her friends get out of this bind?**

**The answers, at least a few of them, will come soon enough! In the meantime, I hope you liked this chapter... and see you soon!**


	19. Zoey vs Jakov

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! I'm back!**

**Real life tries to have its way with me, and playing Super Robot Wars L and Pokemon HG doesn't help along with the writing of this fanfiction... but hey, here is the new chapter! Hope I didn't take too long to publish it!**

**This chapter features the exciting - hopefully - conclusion to Zoey and her friends' problem of having gotten caught by the enemy, who has just now given them an ultimatum: the tried-and-true "join us or die". How will they get out of this mess? Will they be able to stand up to their opponents' Pokemon? **

**The answers are right below, so... hope I did a good job!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 19 – Zoey vs Jakov**

"So..." Zoey murmured, looking at the floor as she tried to somehow wriggle free of the ropes tying the behind her back. "The choice is to either join you, or die? That's what you mean?"

"That's exactly it!" Jakov answered nonchalantly, as his Noctowl nodded, never taking his hypnotic eyes away from the girls. "After all, it doesn't sound like that bad an idea to me! If you join Team Vicious, not only will you have your lives spared and an assured future, but you will also have the chance to obtain stronger and better-trained Pokemon who will obey your every order, and will allow you to take a place among the most feared trainers in the world! Just think about it... you two are Gym Leaders already, are you not?" he turned to Candice and Maylene, who glared at him hatefully as he walked before them, taking another bite out of his cheeseburger. Droplets of ketchup and senape sauce dropped from his meal to the floor as he did so. "Just think how much stronger you'd become thanks to our gift! I know you'll like the idea... And about you... Zoey, was it? Just imagine what a great coordinator you'd become thanks to the Pokemon our leader will give us! You could easily get your revenge on that silly little girl who defeated you at the Grand Festival... and with your skill, you'd easily become a commander, just like me! And since the alternative is to get killed anyway, I'd say you will choose wisely and..."

"I refuse."

Jakov stopped cold as soon as Zoey pronounced these two simple words, and even his Noctowl widened his eyes all the more in surprise. For several seconds, Jakov found himself unable to utter a word due to the shock, and he could only stand there like an idiot and stare at Zoey's unreleanting eyes... then, his sense of humour returning all of a sudden, the fat Team Vicious commander chuckled nervously, pointing at the red-haired girl, who still failed to see what was so funny about the whole deal.

"Heheheee... Hahahahahaaa! Nice one, kiddo! Not bad at all!" Jakov laughed at her. "You're really funny, you know that? For a moment, I actually thought you were about to refuse our generous offer here! But of course you will accept, right? Since the alternative is to get killed here..."

"I'm not joking at all, pal!" Zoey cut him short, trying to stand up as much as her restraints would allow her to. "I will never accept to become a pawn for a bunch of criminals! And I'll never betray my friends' trust!"

"Yeah, I agree with Zoey!" Maylene shouted. "I'll never serve you!"

"Well, that makes three with Candice! Did you actually think Candice would help the people who attacked her town and killed three of the people living there?" Snowpoint City's Gym Leader concluded. "You can forget about it!"

Jakov found himself completely stupefied, to the point where he relinquished his hold on his cheeseburger and caused what remained of it to splatter unelegantly on the floor. "Wh... What... you... you..." the Team Vicious commander mouthed in bewilderment. He was so utterly taken off guard, in fact, that he seemed to be unable to find his voice to order the three girls executed...

Maylene understood that it was then or never, and that she had to strike while the iron was hot. With an angry start, the young pink-haired martial artist stood up and pulled away from the wall, trying to force the knots keeping her tied up... but she quickly saw that it was a very robust kind of rope, and whoever had tied her to that metal handle knew what he was doing. The knots were so tight that the rope wouldn't even move...

"Maylene? What are you doing?" Zoey exclaimed. "You can't just break that rope apart!"

Seeing the pinkette futilely trying to burst free, her teeth clenched and her face taking on a funny red hue, Jakov seemed to regain some of his previous affability and laughed mockingly. "Hohohohooo... now, kiddo, what are you trying to do?" he exclaimed. "You should know that you have no chance of bursting them. Those ropes are far too robust..."

Maylene paid him no heed, and kept pushing and pulling in order to free herself of the restraints... once, twice... and finally, at the third attempt, a terrifying sound of ripped metal struck everybody's ears, and the metal handles Maylene was tied to came apart. sending small peebles and pieces of metal everywhere! Zoey and Candice's eyes widened in disbelief, and both Jakov and his Noctowl's jaws literally dropped! Maylene herself didn't seem to have expected that, and stood gawking at what remained of the metal handles... who soon after slid to the ground, not restrained by the ropes any more, and clattered noisily upon it. The ropes slid to the ground themselves... and the young girl, shaking off her disbelief, turned to Jakov and flashed him a radiant smile!

"But your metal handles? Not enough so, I'm afraid!" she happily exclaimed. In a flash, she grabbed her snow jacket and dramatically tossed it aside, revealing her combat outfit underneath it! Before Jakov and his minions could react, Maylene kicked off her snow boots and charged head on, punching the nearest grunt in the face and dropping him like a sack of rice! Another one tried to grab her, only to be flipped judo-style over the small girl's shoulder... and then Maylene turned her attention to the rest of the grunt, knocking them out in a flurry of quick and accurate blows! Zoey and Candice couldn't help but be impressed with their friend's display of skill!

"Candice.. is very happy Maylene is a friend!" the Ice-type Pokemon trainer commented. There was not much Zoey could answer, except nodding her head while keeping her mouth half-open...

Frightened by the ease with which Maylene was taking out their subordinates, Jakov and his Noctowl took advantage of the fact that the girl was still busy fighting and ran away as fast as they could - not that much, in Jakov's case - towards their office! Maylene ignored them as she roundhouse kicked the last of the Team Vicious grunts into unconsciousness... then, after making sure they were all down for the count, she went over to Zoey and Candice in order to free them.

"Zoey, Candice! Hold on a sec, I'll take care of this..." she said as she began to untie the knots holding her friends. Soon after, both the coordinator and the Gym Leader were free, and they thanked Maylene as they rubbed their sore wrists. The three girls quickly checked to see if their Pokeballs were still in place, and sighed in relief as they noted that it was actually the case! Clearly, Jakov was so sure that they would have accepted his offer, that he hadn't even bothered taking their Pokeballs away, instead settling for just tying their wrists.

"Our Pokemon are still with us... that's good!" Zoey said. "But still... wow, Maylene, you really did a number on those guys, you know? You knocked all of them out, and you're not even winded! That was really amazing!"

Maylene rubbed her forehead and chuckled goofily. "Hehehee... actually, I was trying to break the ropes, but this is good enough, isn't it? And now, let's get outta here! Those guys will soon be hot on our trail!"

"We already are, you meddlesome brats!" Jakov growled, startling the girls. The obese Team Vicious commander had just come back, two Pokeballs in his coarse hands, and his expression a far cry from the serene attitude he had a few minutes before. He was, in fact, mightily pissed that Maylene had made a fool out of him in front of his men... and he seemed to have decided that the only way to redeem himself as a leader was to defeat the girls with his own hands. "Nobody takes it out on my men and gets away with it! You were warned, kids... since you all seem to want to play heroines and you refused my offer, I have no choice but to eliminate you! Bring it on!"

Zoey and Candice were undaunted, as they stepped forward holding one Pokeball each... and just then, Jakov tossed his in the air, allowing two of his best Pokemon to come out: a Slowking, a Pokemon similar to a small pink bipedal hippopotamus with a white underbelly, with a rather vacant expression on his face and a large conus-shaped shellfish biting down on the top of his head, acting like a makeshift crown; and a Slaking, a robust cross between a gorilla and a sloth, with a muscular torso and baboon-like arms hanging almost all the way to the ground, a cold glare and a pair of small fangs protruding from his mouth. Zoey already had some experience with those Pokemon... they were both slow but very powerful, and if Jakov had gotten his place in Team Vicious because of his skill in battling, she knew she was in for a rough battle.

"If you think Candice and her friends will give you an easy time... you're dead wrong! Come out, Abomasnow!" Candice exclaimed. Her Pokeball flew open and let out a simian-like Pokemon, the same kind as those who had tried to attack Zoey's team earlier, as they were making their way up the snowy peaks.

"Maylene! You and Lucario will take care of the other guys! I and Candice will be more than enough for this guy!" Zoey exclaimed, before letting her own Pokemon out. "Gallade, come out! I need your help now!"

Kirlia's alternate evolution materialized in front of his trainer and at Abomasnow's side, ready to face Jakov's Pokemon... who, by their part, tried not to have them deal the first blow, and immediately rushed to attack! "Slowking, use your Flamethrower... on that Abomasnow!" the obese criminal exclaimed, catching both girls by surprise with the fact that a Water Pokemon had learned a Fire-type move. Slowpoke's alternate evolution took a deep breath and shot a large crimson flame towards the Grass / Ice Pokemon... and only Zoey's quick thinking saved Candice's Abomasnow from a very dangerous attack!

"Gallade, get in front of him and use Protect!" the redhead ordered. With blinding quickness, her Psychic / Fighting Pokemon placed himself in front of Abomasnow and created a shimmering energy shield in front of himself, deflecting the flames. Though this gave Slaking ample time to get his act together and attack...

"And you, Slakking... use a Strength attack! Hit them now!" Jakov exclaimed. The gigantic sloth grabbed a huge block of solid rock, raised it above his head and flung it like a ballista shot against both Abomasnow and Gallade. Once again, both Pokemon were only saved by their trainers' quick wits...

"Drat... quick, Abomasnow, use Ice Shard!" Candice ordered, just as the boulder was about to land on her Grass / Ice Pokemon. Abomasnow rapidly pointed her arms at the flying rock and shot a fusillade of ice blades that pierced it and caused it to shatter in countless pieces! Then, taking advantage of the fact that, after that attack, Slaking seemed to take his sweet time getting in position again, Abomasnow took the initiative and charged Slowking!

"Use a Wood Hammer attack, Abomasnow!" Candice ordered. The alarmed Slowking tried to retaliate with a Psychic attack, but he was too slow, and Candice's champion managed to get close to him and deal a violent blow with her right arm, swinging in a circular motion! Slowking grunted as the blow lifted him clean off the ground and threw him some distance away, causing him to land on his back, on the cold, hard steel floor. Jakov gave a short alarmed cry and rushed to his Slowking's side to make sure he was okay.

"Slowking!" the Team Vicious commander exclaimed, surprising Zoey and Candice with his genuine and unexpected display of compassion for his Pokemon. He kneeled down before his Slowking and helped him up, breathing in relief as the Water / Psychic Pokemon managed to climb back up. Then, he glared back at the two girls, his eyes filled with a terrible desire for revenge. "How... how dare you treat my Slowking like that? My Pokemon and my men are the most precious thing to me! I won't allow you to do such things to them!"

These words caused Zoey to feel a pang of compassion for that man, who couldn't have faked all the anguish he was showing then... but after thinking about it for a second, Zoey and Candice felt a surge of rage against the man's hypocrisy, and decided to call him out on that. "Well... aren't you being a huge hypocrite right now? You are accusing us of harming your Pokemon... and what about you?" Candice exclaimed.

Jakov frowned in irritation, "What? What are you saying, little girl? You are talking about my Pokemon, my best friends! You are not allowed to harm them!"

"And that's just what my friend was saying just now!" Zoey accused him, a finger pointed at him. "At first, I thought you were just a cold-blooded killer... but I can see you can feel love and compassion towards your Pokemon and your underlings! Then... why couldn't you spare some of that compassion for the people you buried under the snow?"

The obese Team Vicious executive muttered something under his breath, and then began fighting back with unchanged ferocity! "Shut up, you rugrats! You do not understand the grandiosity of Team Vicious' scheme! A few sacrifices can be made, for such an high-minded cause! Slowking, Slaking... keep attacking, and take out those Pokemon!"

Jakov's Pokemon stood on guard again and got ready to resume their attack, but this time, Gallade and Abomasnow looked more than ready to fight back. "I don't think it will be that easy!" Candice answered. "Use Energy Ball, Abomasnow!"

"Show them what we're all about, Gallade!" Zoey followed up. "Strike Slaking down with Psycho Cut!"

On the opposing side, Slowking's body was enveloped in a pale blue aura, and the Water / Psychic Pokemon's vacant eyes lit up, while Slaking reared back and threw himself at his opponents, ready to deliver a devastating Body Slam! Gallade slashed the air with his arms, tossing a shining arc-shaped projectile at his opponents, but the Slowpoke king tossed a Psychic attack in response and intercepted Gallade's Psycho Cut in midair, causing a spectacular display of light and explosions as the room was shaken by a miniature earthquake. Abomasnow created a glowing sphere of green energy in her massive hands and threw it at the massive sloth Pokemon, who had no choice but to take the attack head-on and grit his teeth in pain... but in the end, Slaking was only slowed down a little, and was able to continue on his way and throw himself at his opponent with all of his weight!

"Abomasnow!" Candice exclaimed as one of her strongest Pokemon flinched... but the Grass / Ice monster was immediately back on her feet, and began bombarding Slaking with her flailing fists, causing the mightly yet sluggish sloth Pokemon to step backwards, using his arms to protect himself. Abomasnow, taking advantage of his slow response times, was keeping him under pressure, and Jakov, his fists clenched at his sides, understood that he was dealing with far more formidable opponents than he had anticipated.

"Curses, I really didn't need that..." he muttered to himself, as his Noctowl, still perched on his shoulder, was intently watching the fight, never allowing himself to get distracted for a second. "The leader won't be happy if I mess this one up..."

**oooooooooo**

At the same time, in Hoenn...

Rustboro City was pretty different from cities like Littleroot or Petalburg: it was a large, busy metropolis, one of the largest of the continent, not to mention it was where the first Gym of the Hoenn League was located. And that was what had brought Max and May there: the siblings, having just been to the Pokemon Center to let their Pokemon rest after several days of walking through the wild lands, had taken a couple days off to allow Max to think up a strategy to be used against the Rock-type Gym Leader, Roxanne... and now, after getting his team organized, the young boy was feeling pumped up and ready to face the pretty Gym Leader

"So, Max, what's the situation?" May asked, as the two siblings were sitting at a table near a window of the Pokemon Center. Max's team, composed of Mudkip, Poochyena and the newcomers Zigzagoon and Ledyba, was now standing at attention in front of their trainer, and they were doing their best to look determined, though the two rivals, Poochyena and Zigzagoon, were still glaring at each other, seemingly challenging each other to see who would have fared better in the upcoming Gym battle.

"I think I'm reasonably prepared, sis!" the glasses boy proudly said, taking a look at his four Pokemon. "Ledyba's attacks should be able to confuse Roxanne's Rock-type Pokemon and allow me to get somedecent attacks in, while Mudkip's Water and Ground attacks should be able to do the rest. At least, that's my theory...". And Max already knew that theory and practice are one and the same in very few cases.

"Alright..." the older sister said, adjusting her bandanna. In fact, Max's team didn't look like it was that well-armed to face a Rock-type Gym, but knowing her brother, he probably had something in mind to even the odds. "Still, remember this... though I guess you probably already know... Ledyba is extremely weak to Rock-type attacks. You will need to find a way to dodge them, or Ledyba won't be able to last long."

"Yeah, and Rock-type Pokemon are among the best, when it comes to defence..." Max answered. "But don't worry, sis, I've already got something in mind!"

"That's good to know." A familiar quiet and deadpan voice murmured, belonging to a pretty red-haired and perpetually frowning young girl that entered the Pokemon Center right then, joined by a Treecko, a Dustox (clearly, the evolved form of that Wurmple Max had seen her with at the beginning of his journey) and a newly-acquired Taillow. "I do hope you've got a good strategy, because I think you'll need it."

"Wha? Who..." Max asked, turning in her direction. The two siblings immediately turned that way and recognized the one who had just spoken... and who, as it seemed, had cleared Rustboro Town's Gym ahead of them. "Hilde! Imagine meeting you here of all places..."

"I wasn't expecting it myself, so I guess we're even." the red-haired little girl said, almost indifferently, as she allowed her moth-like Pokemon to land on her shoulder. "Still, I can see that you've been seriously training your team. That does give you points."

"I guess I should say thank you, Hilde." Max answered, somewhat miffed. Hilde sure wasn't that good at sweetening pills. "I knew I would have had to deal with a rather tough Gym, so I tried to prepare my team well enough... and not to rely on Mudkip only, as you can see! But tell me, have you faced Roxanne already? How did it go?"

"I win. Just barely, but I won." Hitomi stated, refusing to show pride for her victory. "Dustox and Treecko have both done a great job, but despite my prepations, Roxanne did give me an hard time. She's the kind of person who knows her stuff."

To show that what she was saying was true, Hilde took a case out of her backpack, opened it and showed the golden badge given to her by the Rustboro Gym Leader. "You'd better be prepared for everything, Max. Roxanne can catch you off guard anytime."

"Alright, I'll remember that... but I'm sure my Pokemon will be able to handle her no problem!" the young boy proudly said, giving another look to his team."Right, guys? Are you up to this challenge?"

"_Mudkip!_"

"_Pooch, pooch!_"

"_Zig, zag!_"

"_Ledyyy... ba!_"

Impassible as ever, Hilde looked at the Pokemon lineup and shrugged, not wanting to reach an hasty judgement. "Well, you seem to be well prepared, at the very least. I wish you the best of luck." she affirmed, before starting to walk away...

"Hold on a sec, Hilde! Don't go just yet!" May gently recalled her. As soon as Hilde turned to her, the chestnut-haired coordinator winked at her and invited her to spend some time with them at least. "How about you come with me and watch how Max does in the Gym challenge? I think it would be a nice idea... and it will allow you two to take a measure of your respective skill! And furthermore, being with friends is never a bad thing, is it?"

Max blinked, somewhat surprised at his sister's suggestion... and Hilde herself looked a little puzzled, not understanding the practical value of what May had just suggested. Still, the young female trainer couldn't deny that it didn't sound like a bad idea, to kill time if nothing else. She looked at her Dustox, who looked back at her with his huge compound eyes and moved his wings in an almost begging way, as if saying that he wanted to witness this fight as well.

After considering the idea for a few seconds, Hilde finally shrugged. "Alright, don't see why not. At least this way I'll know what to expect of you, Max." she answered, trying to sound as cold and detached as possible.

"Very well!" May exclaimed. "Then, as soon as we're ready, we'll head to Roxanne's Gym! I'm sure it will be an exciting battle!"

"Whatever you say, sis..." Max sighed, before turning his thoughts back to the upcoming battle. This was a very important moment... his first battle in a Gym! The idea both excited and frightened him. Sure, he knew that his strategy was going to make things a little bit easier, but at the same time, it was such a special occasion that it was only to be expected that he was so tense.

"Alright, guys, soon will be the time to give it all we've got! I'll do my best to make you win, so... please, try to do the same, okay?" Max told his Pokemon, each of whom nodded in assent and psyched himself up for the upcoming battle...

**oooooooooo**

"And so, now you've got a Rhyhorn in your team as well, huh, Brovk?" Ash asked his friend, as the Rock-type expert received his Pokemon from the Nurse Joy of Knot Island. Finally, things seemed to be back to relative normalcy, and when Ash and his friends, Charizard and Charla included, had come back to the Pokemon Center, they had been greeted by enthusiastic cheers and congratulations for having saved the island! And the fact that the group who had quenched Moltres' fury also included an Elite Four, even one from another league, was further motive for excitement. Several hours had to pass before Ash and his friends could finally get away from the crowd and reach the Pokemon Center to let their Pokemon rest.

"Yeah... I'm glad to have met him and become friends with him." the young Rock-type trainer stated. "That will be another step on my road to become a good Pokemon breeder."

"You haven't given up on this dream, I see..." Misty said, smiling in approval. It had been some time since she had heard Brock talk about his ambition, and she was happy to know that he hadn't abandoned it. After all, now that she had gotten a second chance of making one of her dreams come true, she was not going tolet it slip through her fingers...

"Well, the strange weather seems not to be an issue anymore. BUt there are still things we have to think about... especially that guy Ashy-boy has met some time ago." Gary stated, recalling everyone's attention on the current problems. "Say, Ash, how did you call him? The Iron Masked Marauder, or something like that?"

"Yeah, that was like... three years ago, during my journey through Johto. He's a former member of Team Rocket who decided to strike out on his own, and he was trying to capture Celebi, a Legendary Pokemon who controls the flow of time." The winner of the Sinnoh conference answered. "He used these Dark Balls to capture Pokemon and cause them to turn violent and cruel... but I thought he had been rendered powerless after his defeat, and instead, now we're facing him again... he's even founded his own criminal organization, now..."

Dawn wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, and he's got J firmly in his camp... I really don't like where this is going, and we have no idea how strong his organization is." she stated. "Guys, don't you think they might have been responsible for what happened to Snowpoint City?"

"It's hard to say, my friend..." Phoebe answered, massaging her forehead. "But it is quite likely... I just wish we knew more of their MO, so we'd have a better idea on how to fight them..."

"We still managed to repel them for now, right?" Ash asked rhetorically. "They will at least take some time to regather themselves... and we'll be ready for when they'll be back! After all, I don't think J's machine will be repaired that quickly..."

"And speakking of J, I'd like to know how she managed to survive... I was sure she had died during our last confrontation with Team Galactic..." Brock stated. "Still, I fear we'll be facing some difficult times. Now that we've interfered in their plans, I don't think Team Vicious will leave us alone."

"And there's another thing I have to wonder... that is, what Moltres did before disappearing." Phoebe commented thoughtfully. "There's something that escapes us here, because I don't think a Legendary Pokemon ever did such a thing... well, I'll have to look into this when I'm back to Hoenn's Pokemon League HQ. What about you guys, what do you think you'll be doing now?"

"Well, for now, I think we'll continue our journey in Sevii." Misty answered. "Team Vicious has probably left some other tracks in other islands, and if we keep searching, we might be able to find a few more clues about their plans."

"I think it's a good idea." the Ghost-using Elite Four approved. "If that is the case, I can only wish you the best of luck, and hope enough light is shed on this mystery."

Ash cleared his throat, before calling for the attention of the pretty island girl. "Still, miss Phoebe, there is something I'd like to ask you before we go. If it's not a bother to you, of course..."

"Well..." Phoebe answered with curiosity. "I don't think it will be, Ash. Tell me, what is it that you wanted to ask?"

Ash chuckled and scratched Pikachu behind an ear. "I'd like to ask if you would kindly have a match with me, before we take off to the next island." Ash said. "I and my Pokemon would like to see how we would fare now against an Elite Four, that's all!"

Pikachu's cheek sparkled with lightning, showing how eager he was to take on this challenge. "_Pika pika... chuuu!_" he squeaked, ready for everything. Even Charizard, his reptilian eyes flashing with determination, raised his head and grunted an affirmative. "_CHAR!_"

Phoebe seemed to think about that for a second, before smiling and nodding. "Well, I've got no problem with it at all! To be fair, after seeing the way you were fighting, I thought you would be able to give me an exciting fight... which I haven't had in a while!"

"Why was I sure that Ash would have asked that?" Dawn chuckled, knowing very well that Ash would never have missed a chance to have a Pokemon battle against a tough opponent...

Misty shrugged. "That's Ash Ketchum for you..."

"Alright then, miss Phoebe! So... I guess we can battle tomorrow, after our Pokemon are well rested!" Ash answered, before remembering an important issue. "By the way, now that I think about that... Charizard, what will you do from now on?"

The Fire / Flying Pokemon turned to his former trainer, meeting the inquisitive gazes of pretty much all members of his group of friends. "It's actually a smart question, which is kinda rare for Ashy-boy..." Gary said in a vaguely mocking tone, which earned him an annoyed glance from Ash. "Anyway, there is a small problem with that. After all, Charizard, you've been living in Charicific Valley for quite some time, and... well, from what I can see, you've also got yourself a girlfriend! If you wanted to go back to travelling with Ash, you'd have to leave some things behind, right?"

Charizard seemed to be well aware of that... and so did Charla, who was standing near him, looking at her boyfriend with some sort of saddened pride as he turned to her. In a touching moment, the two dragon-like Pokemon looked at each other straight in the eyes, exchanging a silent promise before warmly hugging each other, knowing they would see each other again.

"_Char, char... charrrrr..._" Charizard said, gently holding Charla's hand in his.

The female Charizard nodded, understanding what her companion meant. "_Char! Char charrrr... zard!_"

"_Char!_" Charizard stated, before hugging his girlfriend again. There wasn't really any need for translation there - it was obvious Charizard had told his beloved that he would be away for a while, but that he would soon be back, and they would stay together!

Dawn smiled, feeling a little misty-eyed. "Awww, have you seen them? They are so sweet..."

"You're right..." Misty stated, smiling gently herself. "They look like a couple of Pokemon cubs at their first date!"

"I'm definitely not an expert on dating and stuff, but even I have to admit they're really cute!" Ash answered, himself touched by that display of love and tenderness between two Pokemon that, only a few hours earlier, had been fighting tooth and nail against a frenzied Legendary Pokemon, and holding their own against him. Now, they almost looked like two diffent Pokemon altogether...

"When the right time comes, we'll see by themselves how love can change people..." Brock commented with a wistful sigh. He stepped aside as he saw Nurse Joy coming closer... and the usual symptoms of love-at-first-sight appeared on his face!

"You're absolutely right... after all, love is a feeling that us humans and Pokemon have in common, don't you agree?" the young pink-haired nurse commented with a dreamy expression... which quickly turned to confusion as Brock quickly got in front of her, got on one knee, and held her hands, sparkles lighting up all around him!

"That's just what I was thinking, my fair Joy..." he began, in the latest of his attempt at conquest! "And since, as you said, love is a feeling that connects humans and Pokemon so tightly, how about we try to estabilish a link between us two..."

*ZZZAP!*

Before Misty could intervene and drag the Casanova-wannabe away by his ear, Croagunk, the fastest Poison Jab in Sinnoh, popped out of his Pokeball and struck Brock's rear end, causing him to painfully stiffen and fall to the ground, his face humorously contorted in pain and shock! Then, still keeping that half-grin on his face, the toad Pokemon dragged his hapless trainer away as Brock was still trying to mouth cheesy declarations of love to the latest object of his affections, and both Charizard and Charla sweatdropped at the sight!

"Hehehee... don't worry, Charizard, I'm sure you'll get used to it eventually!" Ash commented with a light chuckle.

**oooooooooo**

The battle of Zoey and Candice's Pokemon against Jakov's Pokemon had been dragging for quite some time, without a clear victor in sight - both sides were too skilled to allow any attack to come close. Gallade's Signal Beam was deflected by Slowking's Amnesia. Slaking's powerful Crush Claw was blocked by Abomasnow's strong arms. Neither side could get a substantial hit in - and Zoey was getting somewhat nervous about it. She and her friend had to finish the battle right then...

"Alright, then I'll have to make sure the next attack is also the last!" the red-haired coordinator muttered to herself, deciding that it was high time to pull out all the stops. "Gallade, let's wrap this up! Usa Sword Dance... and then strike down Slowking with a Leaf Blade! Now!"

Jakov grit his teeth. "Tch... Slowking, get ready to defend yourself, and strike him down with Ice Beam!"

The Psychic / Fighting Pokemon quickly pirouetted in place, and green sparks began glowing on his forearms as Gallade charged head-on towards the enemy in front of him! Slowking crouched low and took aim with Ice Beam, a sphere of glowing white energy forming inside of his mouth... and Candice and Zoey looked at each other in understanding.

Jakov, on the other hand, smirked maliciously as Gallade got closer and closer to his Slowking, savouring the moment when the mighty Psychic / Fighting Pokemon would fall to his Slowking's Ice Beam... in fact, he was so sure that everything would go smoothly that he was caught completely off guard when Zoey gave her next order, waiting just for the moment when Slowpoke's alternate evolution was about to unleash his Ice attack!

"Teleport, Gallade! Now!"

"WHHAT?" Jakov exclaimed, his cocky demeanor soon turning to horror. "Wait! Stop it, Slowking, hold your attack..."

But it was too late to stop the attack, and the crown-wearing Pokemon breathed out a freezing energy beam just as Gallade vanished in a flash, and the Ice Beam passed between Candice and Zoey, causing them to shiver from the cold, before slamming on the wall behind them and covering it in a thick crust of ice, just as Candice was issuing a new order to her Abomasnow!

"Abomasnow! Hit Slaking with Wood Hammer!" the pretty Gym Leader exclaimed. The Ice / Grass Pokemon's arm was wrapped in an otherworldly green aura, and Abomasnow quickly closed in to attack Slaking, who smirked and got ready to counterattack...

But Gallade chose that moment to pop back into existence, right behind the sloth Pokemon!

Abomasnow and Gallade struck together, and the giant sloth barely had time to register surprise before Gallade's Leaf Blade struck him in the back, making him reel and causing him to drop his guard and let Abomasnow's Wood Hammer strike him in the chest! Slaking grunted in pain and surprise as he was lifted clean off the ground, before dropping down with a loud crash!

"W... What?" Jakov shouted as his Noctowl furiously beat his wings in protest. "I... I thought you had chosen a different target each, and you both attacked my Slaking instead!"

"Sorry, pal... we don't make it a habit to play by the ruleswhen someone is trying to kill us!" Candice shot back as Abomasnow and Gallade turned to face Slowking, who was beginning to feel like throwing the match. Without Slaking to back him up, thing looked difficult indeed...

"I think you should just give up now." Zoey told him. "And to give up your plans as well, or we aren't going to take it easy on you."

"Tch..." Jakov snorted as he recalled the fainted Slaking in his Pokeball. "Do you actually think you can threaten me and get away with it? Team Vicious... is the new rising star in the world of Pokemon training! There is no way we can be defeated by a bunch of schoolgirls like you! You've forced me to retreat for now... but don't think for a second it will end like this! We will claim all Legendary Pokemon for ourselves! Noctowl!"

The owl Pokemon hooted again, took flight with a simple clap of his wings and lit up his huge eyes, unleashing an Hypnosis attack which forced Zoey, Candice and their Pokemon to avert their eyes in order not to be stunned. Jakov immediately took advantage of the chaos to recall Slowking as well and run away, with a speed that belied his girth. The alarm echoed inside the secret base a few seconds lster, and Noctowl interrupted his Hypnosis to join his master, leaving Zoey and Candice behind to watch helplessly.

"Darn, he's getting away..." the Ice-type Pokemon expert muttered.

"Let him go, we don't have any business with him anymore..." Zoey answered, rubbing her sore eyes. "What we need to do now, is make sure Team Vicious can harm nobody else... by the way, where's Maylene?"

"Darn, you're right..." Candice said immediately after recalling her Abomasnow in her Pokeball. "We'd better go look for her, I hope she hasn't gotten herself in some sort of trouble..."

"Ya-HAAAA!"

"Hey, watch it!" Zoey exclaim in alarm, hitting the floor and dragging Candice down as well, as a Team Vicious grunt literally flew over their heads and landed in a stunned heap in the middle of the room, five-pointed stars orbiting around his head!

Candice sweatdropped. "I stand corrected. I hope she hasn't gotten those guys into somekind of trouble..."

The two friends ran in the direction the defeated grunt had come from, finding themselves following a trail of knocked-out and stunned grunts and Pokemon who had fallen victim to Maylene and her Fighting-type Pokemon. Sounds of fighting came from a distant room in the maze of corridors, which the two girls immediately tried to follow. Finally, they ended up in a large computer room, where Maylene and two of her Pokemon, her Breloom and her Lucario, were mopping up the last few remaining stragglers. The pink-haired girl had just flipped a grunt on his back using a spectacular aikido throw, while her Breloom and Lucario had their hands full fighting a Weezing and a Golbat respectively. Not that it lasted long, though - Lucario concentrated for a brief moment and used a powerful Psychic attack on his opponent, hitting the giant bat with a shining stream of energy coming from his head. Golbat was hit by the psychic shockwave and slammed on the levigated stone wall, while Weezing was caught and knocked out by a lethally accurate Stone Edge attack from Breloom, who waved his right arm in front of himself and created a shockwave, causing countless pieces of stone to rip out of the floor and slam on the Poison-type Pokemon. The computer room seemed to be clear now, and Maylene, failing to resist the temptation of doing something crazy to celebrate her victory, leapt in the center of the room and raised her fists in the air in an heroic pose. Lucario bowed like a karate fighter, and Breloom lightly tipped the mushroom hat he had on his head, like a samurai...

"Aaaaaalright! We got 'em all, guys!" the small Gym Leader exclaimed loudly. "Are we great or what? Hey, Zoey! Candice! Have you given the fat guy the what-for? Well, then I guess they won't bother us anymore for today!"

A few shocked moment of silence later, Candice put her hand to her forehead and chuckled good-naturedly. "As Candice said before, she's really glad Maylene is on our side!" she said. "Well, that aside... Maylene, do you happen to know whether this is the hideout's main computer?"

"I guess so..." Maylene answered, turning to the largest of the terminals, with Lucario and Breloom by her sides. On the screen, a complete map of Sinnoh was visible, red dots blinking over some regions to mark places of interest to Team Vicious. "But... I think I have to let you deal with it, because I know nothing of these things..."

"I don't know if we really are more qualified..." Zoey answered as she started to study the map in front of her. "First off, we'd have to understand why on Earth these regions are highlighted... though I can guess these are the places where theLegendary Pokemon are located. Those are the three main Sinnoh lakes... Mt. Coronet... and even a certain region in the north, near an active volcano called Stark Mountain..."

"Heatran." Candice said, having already heard about that particular place. "Team Vicious also seeks to capture Heatran, and I can see they've already located him... but as for the Regi trio, they seem to be searching blind. Pity, if only we knew how to use this thing, we could discover something about Team Vicious, and maybe even predict their next move... well, guess we'd better leave that to the police. For now, what really matters is, we've stopped Team Vicious, and they will not cause any more trouble around here!"

"Yeah... Snowpoint City is safe, at least..." Maylene said. "Though I'm afraid they will soon be back. At least we've bought some time, though."

"True... for now, there's nothing more to be worried about!" Zoey said, running a hand through her hair. "Okay, girls, now let's call the authorities and make sure this place gets investigated on!"

"Right!" the Gym Leaders unanimously answered as they flashed Zoey a thumbs-up. The red-haired coordinator did likewise, her thoughts staying to her friend who was in a far away place.

"_Are you dealing with these Team Vicious guys as well, Dawn?_" she asked herself. "_If that is the case, my friend... please, be very careful. These people are really dangerous..._"

**oooooooooo**

Not too far removed from where the battle with Team Vicious had taken place, a colossal ice behemoth, walking in a slow, ponderous pace towards a destination only known to him, stopped suddenly and looked in the distance, towards an horizon swept by howling, frigid winds, an hollow and desolate landscape that would have frightened even the most seasoned mountaineer.

If anyone could have read his thoughts, he would have known that the mysterious ice golem felt like a huge burden had been lifted from his shoulders, and that he had a few mere humans to thank for that...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's note: And that's about it for now! Zoey and her friends have won, for now... and in the meantime, Max is getting ready to tackle his first Gym!**

**Guess I can leave you with a preview for next chapter: does Ash facing Phoebe in a three-on-three battle sound good to you? We'll see how our plucky hero fares against the latest Elite Four! Up until then, hope you're satisfied with this chapter, and... see you soon!**


	20. Ash vs Phoebe

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**And the chapter a lot of people have been waiting for is finally here! **

**This is a special chapter for my Pokemon story - not only does it mark the 20-chapter mark, which I definitely hope will only be the start of a longer and more successful carreer as a fanfiction writer; it is also the chapter where an important battle takes place. Once again, Ash challenges an Elite Four in battle, and this will be an excellent time to see how much better our hero has gotten since his Sinnoh days. And the Elite Four in question is none other than Phoebe, Hoenn's resident spirit-talker and Ghost-type user. Are you expecting a marathon battle yet? You'd better, because Charizard will be taking part in it, too!**

**Alright, so this chapter will mostly cover this battle... but after that, our friends' journey through Sevii Islands will continue in earnest, and they will have more problems to face and new challenges to meet! So, for the moment, just sit tight and enjoy the match! Of course, I'd appreciate it if you could tell me how well I did... so don't be shy and send me your reviews!**

**See you later! **

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 20 - Ash vs. Phoebe**

"Weavile, use Ice Shard."

The Dark / Ice weasel-like Pokemon obeyed, jumping up in the air in a dizzying spin, and then swooping down on his opponent, a particulary large and sturdy Graveler who had attacked Weavile and his purple-haired trainer, mistaking them for easy targets. Unfortunately for him, Paul and his team were showing him how appearances can be deceiving... and when Weavile's ice-covered, razor-sharp claw struck true, the Rock Pokemon got the picture just one moment too late. Weavile's Ice Shard struck him, sending a terrifying chill into his body and forming a thin layer of ice all around him. His eyes turned into swirls and, after swaying from side to side for a few seconds, Graveler fell to the ground with an heavy thud, just as Weavile nimbly backflipped through the air and landed on his feet in front of his trainer. Paul stood there, watching the results of Weavile's training, and nodded, never losing his stoic expression. He had to admit, Weavile had really given it his best, and had gotten a lot better...

"Hm. That will do, Weavile. Enough for today." Paul said, recalling his Dark / Ice Pokemon. The weasel-like Pokemon bowed elegantly and grinned in satisfaction before being reabsorbed by the Pokeball, and Paul put him back with the others, before stopping to think which Pokemon he should train next...

**oooooooooo**

Just as this was happening in Kanto, another important challenge was about to take place in Knot Island: high atop a rather desolate plateau, with only Misty, Dawn, Brock and Gary to act as an audience, Ash and Phoebe were about to face each other in battle!

"Alright then, I've chosen the team with which I'm going to face you... I think we have nothing left to do but to start!" Phoebe commented, playfully twirling the first of her Pokeballs on the tip of an index finger, then flinging it in the air and catching it on the way down. "I suppose you have already chosen who you will use, right, Ash?"

"You bet I am!" Ash answered with his trademark grin, before turning to Pikachu. "What do you say, Pikachu? You ready to mix it up with misss Phoebe's Ghost-types?"

"_Pikachu!_" the cute electric mouse sprayed a few sparks from his cheeks and stood ready for battle, jumping down from Ash's shoulder and getting ready to begin. The young trainer nodded and turned to his travelling companions, who were all sitting on the sidelines, cheering him on.

"Hey, Ash! Pikachu! Give her your best shot!" Misty called out from the side.

Brock nodded. "Just keep your cool, and I'm sure you can do well!"

"Just try not to embarass yourself, okay?" Gary snarked.

"Ash, Pikachu! You can do this, I know that!" Dawn called out enthusiastically.

Ash nodded, silently thanking his friends, and both he and Pikachu stood ready to face Hoenn's Ghost master. "Right, then... we have nothing more to say! We can start right now!"

"Good, because my Banette was getting restless here!" Phoebe told him, just a split second before tossing her Pokeball in the air. "And that's exactly who I will send to face you! Go, Banette, show them what you've got!"

In a flash, a strange Ghost-type Pokemon appeared in front of the electric mouse: it looked like a small black humanoid doll, with three short spikes on top of her head, large purple-red eyes which shone with cruelty, and a zigzag-shaped ribbon hanging behind her head. Her mouth looked like a zipper and was contorted in a mischievous grin, and her long arms ended in three claw-like fingers, while her legs were short and stubby. A short yellow tail, looking somewhat like a brush, was slowly wagging behind the Pokemon, who quickly assumed a fighting stance. It was a Pokemon Ash was not too familiar with, but he did remember seeing one in Harley's team during Hoenn's Grand Festival - a Banette, the spirit of a discarded doll.

However, Dawn didn't remember ever seeing such a Pokemon, and consulted her Pokedex to get more information about it. "_Banette, the Marionette Pokemon. A doll that became a Pokemon over its grudge at being junked. It is seen in dark alleys, and whenever it opens its mouth, cursed energy escapes._" the electronic encyclopaedia droned.

"Creepy..." Dawn commented with a slight shiver. "I wouldn't like to be the one facing that Pokemon..."

However, it took more than just that to daunt Ash Ketchum and his Pikachu, and the young boy quickly set his hat on his head before the battle started in earnest. "A Banette, huh? It won't be enough to frighten us! Pikachu, we'll start this one! Start off with Agility and run rings around that Pokemon!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu squeaked, before darting towards Banette, speeding up so much that Ash and Phoebe had trouble following his movements. Phoebe's Banette floated upwards a little and tried to keep her eyes on Pikachu, never losing that disquieting grin on her phantom-like features. Then, before Banette could try for a counter, Pikachu darted towards her and began sparkling, as if he was about to unleash his trademark Volt Tackle on the phantom doll... but, all of a sudden, it turned out that Ash and Pikachu were just faking the attack, and the electric mouse nimbly slid under Banette's body and landed on the other side, surprising both the marionette and her trainer.

"Wow, now that was good thinking!" Misty said. "And here I thought Pikachu was going to go for a Volt Tackle!"

"Ash and Pikachu seem to have learned to fake out their opponents..." Brock stated. "With all their experience, they now have an idea of what their opponents expect of them, and they know enough to counter them. Yeah, it had to be said... the journey in Sinnoh did wonders for their battle tactics!"

"Well done, Pikachu! And now... hit Banette with a Thunder Wave!" Ash ordered. Pikachu smiled and began charging up for his paralyzing attack... but unexpectedly, Banette turned in his direction with blinding speed and swung her arm around, her short claws prolonging to the length of human fingers!

"Shadow Claw, Banette! Now!" Phoebe ordered. The marionette Pokemon brought her arm down, trying to hit Pikachu with her sharp claws... and the electric mouse only dodged the blow thanks to his speedy reflexes: he jumped sideways just as Banette's claws sunk into the ground, carving out a few peebles from it! However, the sudden dodge caused Pikachu to lose concentration and his Thunder Wave to fizzle out harmlessly. The two Pokemon quickly squared off again, and this time, Banette and her trainer seemed to want to take the initiative.

"Quick, Banette... attack that Pikachu with Sucker Punch!" Phoebe ordered, anticipating an attack from Ash's main Pokemon. Her prediction proved correct, and in a flash, Banette dashed towards Pikachu and caught him off guard, hitting him with a quick and powerful backhand slap that threw the Electric Pokemon on the ground. Luckily, Pikachu rolled back to his feet, apparently none the worse for wear, and kept on with the attack!

"Okay, Pikachu, let's try another way... use a Growl attack!" Ash ordered, causing all of his four friends to slightly widen their eyes in surprise - they definitely weren't expecting Ash and Pikachu to use such a basic, yet still effective, move. Pikachu, however, had no hesitation and, after taking some breath, let out a cute, squeaky growl that seemed to actually rattle Banette somewhat, causing the Ghost Pokemon to back away a few paces.

"Hmm... so, you're using some status-changing moves in order to weaken my Banette's offensive abilities, huh? That's quite a good tactic, I have to say!" Phoebe commented. "It is not important which moves you know, but the way you use them... and you seem to know that!"

"We're not halfway through yet!" Ash declared. "Now, Pikachu... attack with Iron Tail!"

"_Pika pika chu!_" Pikachu's tail began glowing with power, and the electric mouse gracefully pirouetted around itself a couple of times before bring his now iron-hard tail down on Banette's head! The surprised Ghost Pokemon managed to barely dodge the blow, which still hit her on the arm, numbing it for a few seconds, and Banette shrieked in anger and pain as she backed away some more. However, before Pikachu could press the attack, Phoebe quickly gave another order...

"Don't let that Pikachu follow up... use Shadow Sneak, now!" the island girl ordered. Banette grinned again, and the shadow she was projecting on the ground suddently grew and literally emerged from the ground, slamming the unprepared Pikachu on the face and causing him to fall to the ground once again!

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed. He was just as surprised as his friend was, and neither he nor his friends had ever seen that kind of move. "What... what was that move? Shadow Sneak, you said?"

"Shadow Sneak?" Gary asked. "Hey, Brock, do you happen to know anything about this move? That's the first time I hear of it..."

"Sadly, it just happens to be the first time I hear of this move as well." Brock answered. "However, it does seem to be an high-priority move, just like Quick Attack or Aqua Jet..."

"Indeed, that's the case! Shadow Sneak is the Ghost-type equivalent to those attacks!" Phoebe explained as Pikachu picked himself up from the ground, and Banette floated down with her claws unsheathed. "Not a really powerful move, but enough so to mess with opponents who can't resist Ghost-type attacks. And now, Banette... attack with Will-O-Wisp!"

The marionette Pokemon grinned even more widely and summoned a few spheres of glowing spectral fire which surrounded her body, before throwing them at Pikachu, one at the time. Luckily, the electric mouse was more than ready for that, and managed to quickly dodge the assault: each and every flaming sphere impacted on the ground, exploding harmlessly upèon impact. Quickly, Pikachu turned to Banette and unleashed another attack, this time going for direct damage!

"Pikachu... attack with Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered. The Electric Pokemon used another one of his trademark attacks, surrounding himself with a crackling electric aura for one second, and then unleashing it all on the ghost puppet, hitting her head-on! Banette scrunched her eyes and grit her teeth in pain as hundreds of volts coursed through her body, causing her to lose altitude. Cheering from Misty and Dawn brought a small smile on Ash's face - this was the first time he and Pikachu ever managed to last so long against an Elite Four, and it seemed that the battle was not going to be decided soon, either!

"Nice bit of battling, kid! Banette and I haven't had such a stimulating fight in a while!" Phoebe complimented her opponent, far from being worried. "But don't worry, you still haven't seen the last of us! Use Payback, Banette! Show them what you're made of!"

The Ghost Pokemon let out a low, spooky laugh and, turning the pain from the earlier attack into pure rage, flung herself at Pikachu and struck him with all of her strength. The yellow mouse squeaked again and fell to the side in a small cloud of dust... but Banette's expression quickly turned into a frown as her movement son grew sluggish and awkward, and she felt a jolt of electricity coursing through her ethereal body. Phoebe wrinkled her nose, mentally slapping herself for letting herself be suckered into committing such a silly mistake - using too many contact moves on Pikachu had caused the Electric Pokemon's Static ability to activate, causing Banette to be paralyzed.

Pikachu climbed to his feet again and smiled in relief, thinking that the battle was about to get a little easier now that his opponent was at least a little impaired... and even Ash had begun to think that, this time, they might actually stand a chance at defeating a Pokemon belonging to one of the Elite Four! However, despite everything, Phoebe knew that her Banette was not down for the count yet, and there was still something she could have done...

"Alright, then... let's see how you like that!" she murmured to herself. "Banette, we're going for broke here!"

"Don't let her attack again, Pikachu! Use a Thunderbolt again!" Ash exclaimed. Again, with a self-assured grin, Pikachu charged up and shot a powerful globular bolt against Banette, thinking he could do some real damage to it...

"Protect!" Phoebe quickly ordered, and the marionette Pokemon rapidly put up a semi-transparent shield around her body, causing the electric attack to harmlessly bounce off of her and disperse! Ash grit his teeth, seeing this one chance getting wasted like that, and tried to think of another strategy to even the odds... but this time, Phoebe and her Banette were faster!

"Alright... and now, Banette, let's wrap this up! Use Curse!" the girl ordered. Banette narrowed her eyes, and a large nail appeared in one of her clawed hands, before she pointed it at herself and plunged the tip in her own smoky chest, letting out a small grunt of pain as she did so. However, the self-attack move quickly took its toll on Pikachu as well - before the electric mouse could charge up for another Volt Tackle, his eyes widened in surprise and pain, and he put an hand on his chest, feeling a stinging sensation inside of himself! Ash called out his name in alarm, and the yellow mouse grit his teeth and tried to stand up again... but the effects of the Curse attack were inescapable, and Pikachu was soon forced to slump on the ground in exhaustion, giving the first round to Phoebe and Banette.

"Pikachu is unable to continue!" Brock declared. "Banette wins this round!"

"Phew... it's been a rather near shave, I have to say..." Phoebe commented, before recalling her Banette. "Anyway, great job, Banette! You did well like always! And good job to you as well, Ash Ketchum! Your Pikachu is well-trained, it doesn't happen often that my Banette is forced to go all-out like that!"

"Well, I was rather hoping we'd get to last a little longer, but still... thanks!" Ash thanked the Ghost user, before picking up Pikachu and gently placing him far enough from the battlefield. "Alright, then... guess I have no choice but to bring out the big guns! I choose you... Charizard!"

With a mighty roar, the Fire / Flying dragon-like Pokemon materialized on the battlefield and spread his wings, issuing a challenge to Phoebe, who nodded and recalled her weary Banette. "Well, well... but just because you are able to do that, doesn't mean I can't fight seriously as well. Time to use my own strongest Pokemon... your turn, Dusknoir!"

"_NOOOOIR!_" the monstrous spectre howled eerily, his single eye lighting up with a disquieting green aura. The zigzagging mouth in his stomach opened wide, showing the inside of the Ghost Pokemon as a pitch-black, hollow hole, before Dusknoir floated down and stood ready for the battle. Charizard frowned, already feeling the pressure from the mighty phantom's massive frame... he could feel he was facing a very tough opponent, and he had to go all out if he was to win the fight!

This time, Ash decided to wait it out and see what Phoebe could have pulled as a first move... and the island girl wasted no time to show that she really meant business! "Let's start this off with a Shadow Punch! Go for it, Dusknoir!" she ordered. The phantom Pokemon raised his arms and, much to Ash's surprise, the mouth on Dusknoir's stomach opened wide, and a glowing fist made of purple energy materialized inside of it before flying at top speed towards its target! Charizard, with a grunt of surprise, took to the air in order to avoid the hit, but Dusknoir's Shadow Punch automatically readjusted its own position and struck true anyway, causing the fire lizard to lose his balance for a short while and flap helplessly his wings in the air. He quickly recovered, though, and was soon ready for another go!

"Shadow Punch never misses its intended target!" Phoebe explained with a small smile. "Looks like your Charizard didn't know about this..."

On the sidelines, Ash's friends were beginning to look worried. While Charizard had obviously grown a lot more powerful from his training in Charicific Valley, he was now facing Phoebe's strongest Pokemon, and he appeared to be at a disadvantage already. "Well, one thing has to be said for sure, Phoebe has done one heck of a good job training that Dusknoir..." Gary commented. "Guess Ashy-boy has his work cut out for him, huh?"

"I guess so... but you know how our friend is! I'm sure he can find a way around that!" Brock commented, just as the two Pokemon squared off again. Dusknoir tried to attack again, and this time, his right fist was enveloped in a crackling electricity aura, which warned Ash of an incoming Thunder Punch!

"Alright, Ash, keep your hair on..." the young boy told himself. "I've already faced a Dusknoir before, when I went up again Conway in the Sinnoh tournament... this is the same, only it's a fair bit stronger... let's see how I can take out this guy... alright, I think I got it!"

"Right, Charizard! Stop that guy on his tracks with Scary Face!" Ash ordered, and the dragon was all too eager to comply, distorting his reptilian face into a frightening scowl, and lighting up his eyes in a scarlet glow that made him look almost demonic! Dusknoir, who was about to punch Charizard with his electrified fist, stopped dead and hesitated in front of the Fire / Flying Pokemon's determination, which gave Charizard all the time he needed to attack again! "Excellent job, Charizard! Follow it up with Shadow Claw!"

Phoebe's eyes widened slightly as she heard the name of the move, knowing all too well that Ghost Pokemon were particularly weak to their own type. And in fact, when Charizard's front claws began glowing in a purple aura, and the dragon viciously slashed his opponent with both of them, Dusknoir was thrown backwards with an eerie howl of pain, showing that the move had taken its toll on the otherwise robust phantom. As an added bonus, the sparks surrounding Dusknoir's clenched fist fizzled out and disappeared, foiling his attempt at a Thunder Punch attack!

"Awesome!" Dawn cheered. "Ash and Charizard managed to stop that Thunder Punch attack! Way to go, Ash!"

"It was nice thinking on Ash's part indeed!" Misty exclaimed, feeling secretly proud of Ash's progresses. "But the battle has only just begun, so let's wait before we call it a win for Ash and Charizard..."

Dusknoir shook his head to stop the dizziness and tried to get his act together and regain what advantage he had lost. Phoebe herself had to admit that she had not expected Ash's Charizard to be able to pull off such an effective combination of moves. It appeared that she was not mistakn, then, when she had sensed the potential for greatness in the young boy! However, she was not going to make things easier on him...

"Fine, then... Dusknoir, I think it's time to name our own terms for this fight! Use Disable to take out Charizard's Shadow Claw!" the island girl said. Dusknoir nodded, and his bigger eye, the one in the center of his head, shone with a sinister green glow, and Charizard, who was about to attack again with the same move, looked quizzically at his own claws right when the purple light surrounding them faded. Annoyed, the dragon grunted and tried to turn to another attack...

"It's no problem, Charizard, we have other ways to deal with him!" Ash assured him. "For instance... why don't you give him a nice Fire Blast, for a change?"

Charizard grinned, then opened his mouth wide and charged up a large kanji-shaped blast of flames, which exploded out of the dragon's maw and flew towards Dusknoir! The grisly-looking spectre could do nothing but glare in surprise and anger as he tried to brace himself for impact, using his strong arms to lessen the effect of the blow as much as he could. But even he was not strong enough to completely contain the huge Fire-type attack, which blasted him several feet away from his position and left him sprawling, battered and ignoble, on the hard, unforgiving stone. Ash's friends cheered from the sidelines, and even the tired Pikachu managed to smile and give his trainer a thumbs-up!

"Nicely done, Charizard... and now, keep up the assault! Use a Fly attack!" Ash told his strongest Pokemon, who roared in defiance and took to the air with a single clap of his mighty wings. The flame on the tip of his tail grew stronger as Charizard eyed the rising Dusknoir with a predatory look, about ready to swoop down and put a quick end to the battle...

But Phoebe had a different opinion about it, and she showed.

"Not so fast, boy... Dusknoir, let's even the playing field! Use Gravity!" the island girl exclaimed. As Charizard grunted in alarm and Ash frowned, Dusknoir brought both his arms up, his body starting to glow eerily, and quickly brought them down! All of a sudden, Charizard felt like an enormous weight had been placed on his back, and he scrunched his face in fatigue as he tried to beat his wings more and more rapidly... but he felt like his body weighed hundreds of tons, and he could not keep up for much longer. A few seconds later, the Fire / Flying Pokemon landed with an heavy thud and began panting... and Ash and Pikachu themselves were feeling like the air itself had gotten thicker around them!

"Uuugh... what's... what's this about?" Ash asked. "Charizard, what's the matter? Are you feeling okay?"

"_Charrrrrr..._" the dragon grunted in frustration. Dusknoir was now standing only a few feet in front of him, his spectral hands raised and his body still stuck in that position...

"I can explain that!" Phoebe said with a slight smirk. "You see... Dusknoir can learn the move Gravity, which causes the gravity in the area to increase manifold, and denies any opponent the privilege of flight! Which, in your Charizard's case, also means that he gets to be vulnerable to moves like... this one! Dusknoir, use Earthquake!"

Ash winced, understanding that, now that Charizard had temporarily lost his ability to fly, he was vulnerable to Ground-type attack, which usually would be harmless to the mighty dragon. The phantom raised his arms again and brought them down with even more power, striking the ground in fury and causing a miniature shockwave to erupt from the rock and hit Charizard like a truck, knocking the now-flightless lizard off his feet and sending him tumbling on the ground, where he remained for quite a few seconds, long enough for Ash to start worrying that he might have lost this fight. However, Charizard was nothing if not persistent... and even when he had taken considerable damage from the type-dominant move, he still managed to work up enough strength to stand up and get back into a fighting stance, fighting the terrible weight bearing down upon him. Ash tried to think fast - he needed to work out a solution for this predicament, before the increased gravity brought Charizard to his knees...

Suddenly, Ash thought of an idea, just in time before Dusknoir, unaffected by the increased gravity because of his incorporeal nature, dashed towards him with a Shadow Claw attack. Phoebe nodded and complimented his opponent on the fight he had put up. "Well, I have to say I'm quite impressed. Few ever managed to bring my Dusknoir to these extremes." she said. "But sadly, this is as far as you go... Dusknoir, Shadow Claw!"

"I don't think so! Charizard and I still have something left!" Ash defiantly exclaimed. "Charizard! Use Fire Blast again... on the ground this time!"

Misty, Brock, Gary, Dawn and even Phoebe were caught off guard by that. Had Ash lost his mind? What good would it be to have Charizard blast the ground with that attack? However, Brock's wonder soon turned to a knowing look, and the dark-skinned boy smiled in understanding... just as Charizard charged up his Fire Blast and shot it at the ground! Dusknoir halted his attack and stepped back as a deafening, blinding explosion of flames engulfed the ground right in front of him, and the Fire / Flying dragon was propelled upwards by the sheer force of the blast, allowing him to defeat the hold of the increased gravity, even for just a few seconds! Charizard soared high, engulfed in a spectacular aura of red flames, and managed to turn to Dusknoir in midair...

"Amazing! So that's what Ash's plan was!" Misty exclaimed, her eyes wide with surprise. "He... he used the sheer explosive force of the Fire Blast to allow Charizard to break the gravitational hold... even for just a few seconds! Just like a spaceship taking off!"

"That's exactly it... and it isn't over here, as you will see... right now!" Brock stated with palpable enthusiasm, just as Charizard, still wreathed in flames, began to descend head-first towards the surprised Dusknoir! Phoebe seemed to flinch as well, understanding that the tables had suddenly turned on her, and Ash was now at an advantage!

"And now, Charizard... this is all or nothing! Use Flare Blitz, NOW!" the young boy exclaimed. His valliant champion roared again, and the flames his body was wrapped in intensified as he swooped down on Dusknoir, his own weight increased manifold by the higher gravity! There was nothing the spectral Pokemon could do to lessen the blow, and sure enough, Charizard's Flame Charge overwhelmed him and struck him with the power of a falling meteor, causing a huge explosion around him and sending flaming debris everywhere! Both Ash and Phoebe were forced to step backwards and protect themselves from the flaming hail, as a huge column of dust and cinder was blown in the air, and the earth shook again underneath their feet! For a few seconds, while the terrible weight on everyone's shoulders was gradually lifted, nothing happened as the two trainers waited for the mess to die down a little... and finally, when things were quiet once again, both of them peeked through the cloud of dust to see what the outcome of the battle was...

And there, in the middle of the battlefield, stood Charizard, battered but unbowed, his wings majestically spread and the flame on his tail burning bright... while Dusknoir was lying helplessly on the ground, the "face" on his rotund belly contorted in a comical expression of pain, and his single eye swirling. There was no doubt as to who the winner was... and Ash himself could scarcely believe that!

As the girls both watched in awe, Brock finally cleared his throat. "And... Dusknoir is unable to continue fighting!" he declared. "This match goes to... Ash and Charizard!"

"Should have seen that one coming, after all..." Gary explained. "The increased gravity meant that attacks based on swooping down on the opponent from a great height have more power to them, as the weight of the falling Pokemon is increased as well. Pretty smart thinking for Ashy-boy here!"

"In other words, he used his opponent's own technique against her!" Dawn correctly resumed. "Hehee, just like Ash to think up these strategies on the fly!"

"Yaaaaay!" Ash cheered happily, running to his Charizard and tightly embracing him. "You did it, Charizard! You defeated a Pokemon belonging to an Elite Four! This is... this is just... man, I just can't find the words to express it! I knew you could make it, Charizard!"

"_Pika pi! Pika pika chu!_" Pikachu cheered, jumping up and down to celebrate his trainer's newly reached achievement. This was the first time he had ever managed to knock out a Pokemon belonging to a member of the Elite Four, and a powerful one like Dusknoir to boot! For her part, Phoebe remained flabbergasted that her strongest Pokemon had been defeated in such a way... but then, she saw the amusing side of the situation and giggled before recalling her exhausted Dusknoir.

"Well done all the same, Dusknoir, I'm proud of you!" the island girl said before turning to her opponent. "Well, Ash Ketchum... that was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I have trouble recalling the last time my Dusknoir was defeated, and you did it thanks to your good thinking... it's been quite a long time since I had such a fulfilling battle!"

"Thanks, miss Phoebe... your Dusknoir was a pretty tough cookie as well!" Ash acknowledged the girl's congratulations, before patting Charizard on the head and allowing him to rest. "That will be enough for this battle, Charizard... you won our second battle, and I'm glad to see how strong you've become! Congratulations!"

The dragon smiled proudly and grunted an affirmative before he was recalled in his Pokeball. Now, the two contenders were even, and a tie-breaker match was needed to determine who the victor would be. Right now, Ash and Phoebe were trying to think which of their remaining Pokemon to send on the battlefield.

"Alright then... your turn now, Staraptor! Let's go!" Ash finally chose his third Pokemon, allowing the raptor-like Pokemon to take flight in front of him. Staraptor let out a piercing battle cry and remained in suspension in front of Ash, waiting for Phoebe to make her choice.

"Fine then... guess I'll be fighting Flying with Flying!" the Hoenn Elite Four said with a smile. "It's your time to shine, Drifblim!"

The blimp-like Pokemon emerged from his Pokeball and quietly soared up in the air, vacantly eyeing Staraptor as the huge bird stood ready for the deciding match... which began only split second later, with Staraptor quickly diving towards Drifblim and trying to slap him in the face with his overtaking wings!

"Let's start off with a Wing Attack, Staraptor!" Ash exclaimed, and the raptor-like Pokemon wasted no time hitting the floating ghost with his wings, sending a few feathers scattering around! The blimp-like phantom lost some altitude, but was able to quickly regain it and floated away from danger, as his trainer tried to think of a move to use. Ghost-type moves were out of the question, of course, since they were useless against a Normal-type like Staraptor, but there were ways around it, and Phoebe knew them all!

"As I said, Flying against Flying! Use Air Cutter, Drifblim!" the girl ordered, and Drifblim slashed the air with one of his four limbs and sent a shining energy projectile right at Staraptor, hitting him in the chest right when the huge bird was about to strike again, Staraptor let out a small caw of pain, but was quick to follow up on his attack by using a Double Team attack to further confuse the floating ghost. Phoebe, however, wasn't worried in the least.

"That's an old trick, and I know how to counter it..." the Ghost-type trainer commented. "Go for a Shock Wave, Drifblim!"

The balloon-like Pokemon stopped in midair and quickly charged up, unleashing an arc of electricity that spread from its evanescent body and unerringly struck Staraptor, rendering his Double Team maneuver moot. The large bird Pokemon screeched again and noisily flapped his wings as he shook the electric attack off, then took to the air again and started flying circles around Drifblim.

"Alright, guess I didn't think that one through..." Ash told him, mentally chastitizing himself for the mistake. It seemed that a lot of the opponents he went up against in recent times had a move to counter evasion-enhancing attacks. "Well, no matter... Staraptor, use Agility, and then strike with Aerial Ace!"

"_Star!_" Staraptor exclaimed, accelerating all of a sudden to become a grey-and-white blur of speed... and then swooping down on Drifblim to hit him with a quick clap of his wings, causing the Ghost / Flying type to sway dangerously in midair!

"Hmm... very interesting! You really did a good job with your Staraptor's training!" Phoebe said. "I guess it would be hazardous, at best, to try and match your Pokemon on the physical plane, so... let's mix things up a little, shall we? Drifblim, attack with Role Play!"

Ash narrowed his eyes, remembering that he had already seen such a trick in his battle against Conway, and had managed to overcome it... however, in this case, the effects were immediate and quite dramatic, as the Ghost / Flying Pokemon had taken Staraptor's Intimidate ability, using it to weaken his opponent's resolve... and Staraptor, who had been rather aggressive until then, seemed to become more subdued, and a shadow of doubt crept in his eagle-like eyes. Before the young boy could think of a way to counter this insidious attack and regain his lost advantage, Drifblim was already setting up a new attack!

"Good job, Drifblim! And now... hold that Staraptor still with a Thunder Wave attack!" she ordered. Again, the balloon-like Pokemon charged up and unleashed a weak static shock, which struck the slowed-down Staraptor and caused him to become stiff, making it more difficult for him to defend himself. Ash grit his teeth, realizing that he was being driven into a corner... but until the final blow had been struck, he and Staraptor had no intention of backing down at all!

"Don't give up, Staraptor! I know you can do it!" the young boy cheered his Pokemon. "You can still win this! Use Brave Bird, now!"

The huge raptor Pokemon, who had seemed to be about to fall to the ground from the paralysis, quickly picked himself up again and darted like a torpedo towards Drifblim, catching the floating Pokemon off guard and reaching him in a flash of black and white feathers, before starting to perform a series of fast, unpredictable attacks in midair, looking like he was simply darting through the Ghost / Flying Pokemon's vaporous body, and smacking him with more and more power each go! For a moment, Phoebe actually began to fear that her Pokemon might not be able to withstand the furious assault, and held her breath as Drifblim began losing altitude... but she managed to breathe out a sigh of relief when the weightless phantom turned upright in mid-fall and regained some altitude, nimbly moving his limbs in the air! Staraptor, who had been hard-pressed to go through with the Brave Bird attack, grit his beak in frustration and tried to turn in his opponent's direction to try again with an Aerial Ace attack, but he was rather slow in doing so, no thanks to the paralysing attack he had been hit with earlier... and this gave Drifblim all the time he needed to aim another attack and shoot!

"Do another Shock Wave, Drifblim!" Phoebe ordered, and her Pokemon flawlessly repeated the same attack from before, unleashing a stream of electricity and striking Staraptor head-on! The bird Pokemon let out another shriek... and this time, it was too exhausted to go on, and quietly lowered itself to the ground before passing out, his feathers ruffled and his eyes swirling dizzily. Ash clenched his fist, both in worry for his Pokemon and disappointment in himself... he had hoped he could let Staraptor either win or, at least, hold his own for a little longer, but it seemed that this was not to be the case.

"And... Staraptor is unable to continue fighting." Brock finally decreed, putting an end to the battle. "With a final score of 2 to 1, Phoebe of the Hoenn Elite Fou is the winner of this match."

Drifblim panted heavily for a short while, the battle having tired him more than he had expected, and lowered himself to his trainer's level. Phoebe, for her part, simply smiled and patted Drifblim on his head, as Ash came to pick up Staraptor and confort him over his loss. Pikachu was able to stand up as well, and followed his trainer.

"I'm sorry, Staraptor, I should have thought faster than that..." the boy apologized to his Pokemon. "I was sure that we could take that Drifblim, but it seems we still have a long way to go..."

"_Staraptor..._" the Flying Pokemon said, shaking his head with a small smile.

"Thanks, that's good to hear..." Ash answered, managing to smile himself before turning to Phoebe and her Drifblim. "Congratulations, miss Phoebe... I guess I still need to train my Pokemon a lot more, before I can stand a chance, right?"

"Hey, don't be too hard on yourself, kiddo! You did a great job, I have to say... don't forget that you managed to take down my Dusknoir, and that's not an accomplishment anyone can achieve! Actually, I'd say that you managed to drive me into a corner more than once, so... I think you should feel proud of yourself!" Phoebe commented, winking casually as she congratulated the young boy on his battle. "You're definitely not your run-of-the-mill trainer that comes to challenge me and ends up getting his butt kicked in two seconds flat!"

"She's right, you know..." Dawn chimed in, her Piplup in her arms. "After all, this is the first time you manage to knock out a Pokemon of the Elite Four, and that shows just how strong you've grown! You and your Charizard both, at any rate!"

"I agree, Ashy-boy, that was one really great fight you put up!" Gary added. "I have to say, you surprised me, and your Charizard was really awesome!"

Ash rubbed the back of his head as he recalled Staraptor into his Pokeball for a well-deserved rest. "Hehehee... really, guys, I'm getting embarassed here! Anyway... it was a great battle, miss Phoebe, and I hope we'll get a chance to have a rematch later on! Of course, that's when I'll have trained my Pokemon better..."

"I will be looking forward to that, kiddo!" Phoebe answered cheerily, before recalling Drifblim as well. "And again, thanks for the battle! It's been some time since I fought an opponent as strong as you are! Well then... I guess it's off to the Pokemon Center now, our Pokemon deserve some rest after this... and then, are you heading to Boon Island, in the southeast?"

"Yes, we'll be taking the first ship tomorrow morning..." Brock explained. "We still have some questions we'd like to clarify... and then again, there is this Pokemon I'd like to consult an expert about."

Phoebe blinked in curiosity. "A Pokemon you'd like to ask an expert about? Would you mind showing him to me, please? Maybe I can give some pointers, though Ghosts are my field of expertise..."

"It's actually a Dragon-type, miss Phoebe..." Misty said as Brock nodded and let his Gible out of his Pokeball. The mercurial little landshark appeared in front of the Rock-type expert and opened his mouth wide, showing several rows of small, pointed teeth which seemed strong enough to bite through iron or stone, and the island girl whistled in admiration, recognizing the species.

"Wow... that's a Gible, you don't see many of those around!" Phoebe commented, as she regarded the small Ground / Dragon type with curiosity. Gible's small eyes followed her, probably expecting the girl to hand him a snack or something like that. "Still... other than the fact that it's a rare Pokemon, I don't see how different he is from the rest of his species."

"In fact, there's nothing different about him, miss Phoebe..." Brock answered. "What perplexes me... and everyone who's seen my Gible, in fact... is that he seems to know a strange attack that has gotten us out of a tight spot in several cases, and has caused trouble in others. We have no idea what this attack might be, as we've never seen anything like that before."

Phoebe nodded and rubbed her slender chin, deep in thought. "Oh, I see..." she commented, keeping silent for a short while as she mused about what Brock had just told her. "Hmmm... that's a tough one alright... and I'm afraid I am not the most qualified person for asking such questions. However, I do know a place where you can ask for more help, and it's right on Boon Island. Which is where you're going anyway, right?"

"Exactly... what about Boon Island, miss Phoebe? Do you know someone who lives there and can give us some pointers?" Misty asked hopefully... to which, luckily enough, the Ghost-type expert nodded.

"Indeed I do... there's this old lady who lives in a small house in the wilderness, on the highest peak of the island, and she's notorious for being rather eccentric, and for teaching some pretty powerful moves to the Pokemon she considers worthy of her help." the Hoenn Elite Four answered. "I think she will be able to tell you whatever you need to know... and even if she can't, she can at least point you to someone who does!"

Brock smiled gratefully, happy to know that at least one mystery was going to be solved. "That's good to know, miss Phoebe, I'll definitely look into it!" he answered, before turning to Ash and Gary. "And by the way, that might be a good place for you to train your Pokemon, right?"

Ash and Gary looked at each other, and the young researcher smiled cunningly and nodded. "Tell you what, Ash... that's actually a pretty good idea! It's been quite some time since my Blastoise and I did some serious training, and I think I'd better clear out some cobwebs before we go on with exploring Sevii Islands! What do you say?"

"I suppose it will not hurt to spend some time training our Pokemon..." Ash answered with a small nod. "And what about you, girls? Maybe you could use the time we stay on Boon Island to do some training yourselves!"

Dawn seemed to like the idea. "As long as we don't have Team Vicious to think about, I think we can do that... say, Misty, would it be alright if I asked you to help me out a little with my training?"

Misty nodded, even if she was a little disappointed about missing her chance to see Ash training his Pokemon. Still, she was glad to be of help to her friend from Sinnoh, and she knew she would get other chances to get a little closer to Ash. "Alright, I'm game! But be on your guard, my Water Pokemon are strong, and I'm not going to let your Pokemon slack off... though I maintain that your Piplup is impossibly cute! Hehehee..." Misty giggled, prompting the little penguin Pokemon to flap his wings in mock outrage, and Dawn to let out a girlish giggle. "Fine then... since we've decided our next course of action, I say we go back to the Pokemon Center and get ready for the evening! The first boat to Boon Island will leave rather early tomorrow morning, and we need to be well-rested!"

"You'll get no argument from me, that's for sure!" Ash said as he stretched himself. "What about you, miss Phoebe? Would you like to join us for dinner? That's the least we can do for helping us out so much with J and Team Vicious..."

"I'd really love to, considering that tomorrow I'll have to depart as well..." was the Ghost-type expert's answer. "The Hoenn Pokemon League needs me there soon, after all, and I can't abandon my place as one of the elite Four for long, considering the situation we're in. Still, for this evening, I'll be glad to join you for dinner!"

"We're glad to hear that, miss Phoebe!" Brock commented, as he began leading the group back to the small, lively little town at the foot of Mt. Ember...

**oooooooooo**

Paul frowned noticeably, as his Torterra looked around in search of a Pokemon who could give him a good opportunity for a fight. Unfortunately, as of then, the two of them had had no luck at all... it seemed that even most of Mt. Silver's inhabitants knew by instinct that the large turtle Pokemon was an opponent beyond their ability to handle, and carefully avoided picking a fight with him. If that kept on, Paul thought, it would be next to impossible for him to train his Torterra the way he wanted to...

Frustrated, Paul was about to order his Torterra to follow him elsewhere, when an eerie sound, coming from some bushes on his right, caught his attention. As he quickly turned to see what was going on, he saw a large Drapion, a Pokemon with the appearence of a purple scorpion covered in sharp blades, with glistening claws and a cruelly pointed stinger on the tip of his tail, scuttling towards him in a gesture of challenge. Even by just looking at him, Paul could tell that it was a particularly strong and warlike specimen, easily one and a half the normal size for such a Pokemon, and his arrogant, aggressive attitude meant that he was itching to prove himself in battle.

Paul seemed to ponder for a second, before smirking to himself, thinking that might have been a good challenge for his Torterra. That Drapion was quite probably one of the strongest predators in that area of Mt. Silver... and, in fact, he might have been a great addition to Paul's team, had he turned out to be strong enough...

"Hmm... so, this Drapion would like to challenge my Torterra? I'm game." he said to himself, as the equally-eager giant tortoise came to his trainer's side. "Alright, Torterra! Show me how you handle yourself against him, and let's see how strong this Pokemon is."

Torterra nodded and advanced towards Drapion, his massive legs shaking the ground as he walked, and the scorpion-like Pokemon scuttled backwards, recognizing that he was facing a dangerous opponent. However, he wasn't daunted for long, and he quickly raised his claws and clicked them in the air with a disquieting metallic noise, waving his stinger back and forth at the same time. Torterra shook the tree on his back, causing some leaves to detach from its branches and fall to the ground.

The fight was about to begin, and both combatants seemed to be psyched up and ready...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And the battle between Ash and the latest Elite Four ends with the latter's victory... however, Ash did manage to score a point in his favor this time, and even Pikachu and Staraptor put up a good fight before being brought down. Guess Ash did become a much better trainer following his victory in the Sinnoh League, huh? **

**On the other hand, Paul does seem to be varying his team quite a bit, and after the Tyranitar he caught early on in this story, he seems to want to add a Drapion to his collection as well. However, this will draw some unwelcome attention to him... and you'll soon see what I'm talking about!**

**Oh, and Paul fans, don't worry - Paul will still get his redemption in my story, but it won't come to him as easily as in the anime (which, I maintain, rather than developing him in a believable way, simply handwaved his nastiness in order to make him look sympathetic).**

**My vacations will start in the middle of July and, barring a week back home between the 5th and 10th of August, they will continue until the 21st of August. I hope to be able to write one or two more chapters in the meantime, though, and I hope you still enjoyed this chapter... there's more to come soon, and it involves Max's first real battle as a Gym challenger!**

**See you soon, then!**


	21. Roxanne's Rocky Riot

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Welcome back! I'm afraid this chapter will come just before a 3-month hiatus because of my summer vacations, and I'm already writing it on borrowed time... so I will not annoy you with over-long introductions, and let's get into the action already! I'll be reading your reviews and get back to updating as soon as I'm back from Rome, but in the meantime... I hope you enjoy this chapter! See you!**

**Chapter 22 - Roxanne's Rocky Riot**

Torterra and Drapion were now circling threateningly around each other, each one of them calmly keeping their eyes on their opponent in search of a possible weak point in his defence. Of course, Torterra looked to be a lot bulkier and more resistant than his gangly opponent, but Drapion's claws and stinger, to say nothing of the proud tilt to his head and the way he seemed to prance about in combat, spoke of an highly skilled opponent, not to be trifled with. Not knowing which attacks he could use, Paul thought it a good idea to be wary and try to make sure he knew what that Drapion could do.

"Alroght, Torterra. We'll start out by focusing on defense. Use Withdraw." the purple-haired trained order. The giant tortoise slowly retreated his head and paws into his indestructible shell, so that his opponents had fewer places he could strike at. For his part, Drapion opted not to expose himself too much and stood on guard, waiting for the right moment to strike. Several seconds passed before this stalemate was broken, which happened when Drapion got tired of waiting around and rushed at Torterra with his stinger raised, ready to strike with a Poison Jab. Unfortunately for him, that was just the opening Paul was waiting for...

"Razor Leaf." he ordered, and Torterra shook the small tree on his back, causing several razor-sharp leaves to detach from it, and sending them towards Drapion like a swarm of arrows. The giant scorpion screeched in surprise and tried to defend himself with his claws, managing to block the attack but getting thrown to the ground in a cloud of dust. Paul thought this was a good time to put some more pressure on Drapion. "And now, Torterra... use a Crunch attack. Now."

With an unexpected burst of speed, the tortoise threw himself at Drapion and opened his mouth, revealing the sharp edge of his toothless mouth before closing it upon Drapion's left claw, causing the scorpion-like Pokemon to widen his eyes and shake the injured limb in an attempt to free himself. Slashing at Torterra with his free claw, Drapion managed to wriggle his way out of Torterra's hold and retreated a few steps, trying to think of a way out of that sticky situation, while Paul looked at the battle with indifference. Drapion was starting to get annoyed at himself - he had to put a lot more effort in the battle, if he wanted to be accepted by that trainer...

Before Paul and Torterra could attack again, Drapion dashed forward on four pair of swift paws... and, much to his opponents' surprise, he opened his mouth, razor-sharp teeth gleaming in freezing energy! Torterra tried to get away from the attack, but Drapion was far too fast for him, and mahaged to clamp his freezing fangs in the tortoise's front left paw! Roaring in pain and surprise, the giant turtle flinched... and even Paul's face contorted in surprise: he had not expected that Pokemon to be able to use a move that was so effective against his strongest Pokemon!

"That Drapion knows Ice Fang? I didn't see that one coming..." the boy said to himself. His surprise did not last long, though, and he smiled to himself, satisfied with his luck. "Very well, looks like I found a worthy Pokemon. But a single move is not enough. Torterra, use a Sandstorm!"

The tortoise shook his injured paw to escape the numbing feeling, faced against Drapion once again and, eager to pay back the scorpion Pokemon, began furiously digging in the ground, sending peebles, rocks and debris airborne all around himself. The giant scorpion, who was just then getting ready for another attack, stopped cold and retreated, putting both his claws in front of himself as a defensive gesture... and while the Sandstorm raged around him, he allowed himself a small smile. So his predictions were right - this boy was just the trainer he was looking for! Now he had to concentrate and give it his all... his chances of being picked as a new Pokemon for Paul's team were riding on his performance in this battle. He had to do his best to impress Paul, and he already had half a mind of what to do...

After remaining still for a few seconds to protect himself for the falling debris, Drapion took advantage of a moment when the storm seemed to weaken, and attacked again, this time with a Night Slas attack: his right claw was enveloped in a sinister black aura, and Drapion viviously slashed at the slower Pokemon, scratching off some moss from the top of his shell! The tortoise grunted in pain, but was quick to fight back with another Razor Leaf attack, striking the scorpion-like Pokemon and sending him to the ground, a few steps away from Torterra. However, Drapion quuickly got up, with renewed determination, and Torterra stood back on guard in order not to give him any opening... while Paul, standing on the sidelines, kept watching with ever-increasing expectations.

"Very good... this Drapion is really proving himself." the young trainer told himself. "Coming here on Mt. Silver was a really good idea... when this period of training is over, my team will be almost invincible! You'd better not get too complacent, Ash Ketchum, because you'll be one of the first to experiment my team's new strength..."

**oooooooooo**

Max, May and Hilde were at the moment stepping towards the doors of Rustboro Gym, where the young boy was going to face his first official match. Roxanne's Gym had not changed that much since the siblings had first visited it... and yet, its sight was a source of fond memories for both of them. Especially for May, considering that this was where she had taken her decision to be a Pokemon coordinator.

But that was not the time to get lost in memories, and Max knew that very well. After taking a deep breath and mentally going through the strategy he had worked up, the bespectacled young boy nodded to himself. "Guess this is it... let's give it my all!" he told himself, before turning to the girls who were standing with him. "Sis, Hilde... don't miss out on even one second! I have every intention of leaving you both dumbfound!"

Hilde had no outward reaction, keeping her neutral, aloof expression. Max had to ask himself how could a girl always look so angry and annoyed... "Well, we'll see about that." she answered. "Don't say I didn't warn you, though. This woman is a tough opponent."

"Ugh... I know that, Hilde... you sure have a way to cheer people up..." the young boy snarked, a large sweatdrop pouring from his head. "Well, no matter... the important thing is, I'm here for now. And now, let's concentrate on the battle!"

"Go for it, bro! I'm sure you will do well... if you do have this strategy you say you worked out!" May said with a sprinkle of irony. Max wrinkled his nose, but remained silent and entered the Gym, ready to face the challenge.

Even in its interior, Rustboro Gym hadn't changed at all since Ash had faced the pretty Gym Leader two years before. It still looked somewhat hollow, its walls carved in raw stone, and the arena composed of jagged rocks. At first, the trainers thought it odd that the Gym looked so forlorn, since the Gym Leader must obviously have known that the journey of that year's starting trainers had started only a few days before. It seemed reasonable to think that the Gym Leader was ready to face a challenge at every moment, and yet she was nowhere to be seen...

"How strange... looks like nobody's home." Hilde said, looking around as she tried to find someone of the personnel. "When I came here yesterday, I found Roxanne immediately."

"Dunno, maybe she's busy at the moment... after all, one cannot expect a Gym Leader to be available every hour of the day, right?" Max wisely stated. "Let's just wait a few moments and see if she comes..."

May nodded, and the three sat down on a stone bench near the entrance as they started to wait. One, two... five minutes... just when they were starting to fear that the Gym had really been abandoned, the faint sound of steps on raw stone warned them that someone was coming. Max stood up first to see with his own eyes who was that, and faintly smiled as he saw a pretty girl about a few years older than he was, wearing a blue-grey long-sleeved school uniform with a white collar and a rather short skirt, pink stockings and blue shoes with matching ankle bracelets. Her uniform was further decorated with a pink necktie, and her hair was done in a strange style, with with side pigtails joining up behind her back in a single large plait, held together by a pink ribbon. Max and May recognized her at once - she was Roxanne, Rustboro's Gym Leader.

The young Gym Leader saw the newcomers and greeted them with a polite bow. "Good morning, and welcome to..." she started to say, before she recognized May and Max thanks to her excellent memory. "Oh, what a surprise! You two must be... May and Max, am I right? You were with Ash when he won the challenge in my Gym, two years ago! What bring you back here, now?"

"Good morning, Roxanne!" May said, waving at the older girl. "I'm just here to watch over my bro... he's the one who was interested in meeting you!"

"Right... now that you've reached ten years of age, Max, you got your first Pokemon as well. And now you're here to challenge me, right?" Roxanne correctly deduced, receiving a nod in response from the glasses-wearing boy.

"Yeah, that's just how it is... I'm here to face my first Gym challenge!" Max answered. "Of course, that's if you're willing to accept..."

Roxanne nodded and motioned for Max to follow her in the arena. "I'm ready whenever your Pokemon are ready!" she answered, before noticing that Hilde was there as well. "Oh, and I see there's someone else with you now... you're travelling together, perhaps?"

"I'm just here to see how Max fares against you." Hilde answered with a shrug of her shoulders. "And because I had nothing better to do."

"Whatever you say..." the young Gym Leader answered. She already knew what kind of girl Hilde was, but she was still surprised to see such a young girl behaving in such an aloof manner. "Very well, then... Max, just as I said, if you feel ready, we can start!"

"Let's start, then!" Max answered with a small grin, walking towards the arena with a confident stride. He turned to his sister and his reluctant partner. "Wish me good luck!"

"Good luck, Max! Show her what you've got!" May cheered, with Hilde simply nodding. A few minutes later, Max and Roxanne had placed themselves at the opposing sides of the battle arena, and the young Gym Leader was taking a couple Pokeballs out of her belt as she dictated the rules of the battle as was in her right as a Gym Leader.

"Then, I officially declare open the challenge for the Stone Badge!" Roxanne affirmed. "It will be a two-on-two battle, with no substitutions allowed. The first one to knock out both of the opponent's Pokemon will be declared the winner. Are you okay with this arrangement?"

"Of course I am!" Max answered prompty. In his mind, he had already decided the order in which to use his Pokemon...

"Fine, then... I shall start this battle!" Roxanne concluded, as she tossed one of her Pokeballs on therocky arena. "And my first choice is... Nosepass! It's time to fight!"

Max, May and Hilde were somewhat surprised as the young schoolgirl's Pokemon opened up and released a weird Pokemon whole body was composed of solid, angular bluish stone, whose appearence reminded of one of Easter Island's massive stone heads. Its most prominent feature was its large, triangular red nose, looking like some sort of arrow. Its arms and legs were short, stubby and devoid of joints, and its ears were nothing more than a pair of round holes on both sides of its head. Its eyes were surrounded by black mask-like signs, and they appeared to be perpetually closed, much like a certain old acquaintance of May and Max...

However, its peculiar appearence was not what surprised Max and the girls.

"She's using Nosepass now?" Hilde asked, her hard face softening in a look of bewilderment. "When I faced her yesterday, Roxanne used a Geodude first, and she switched to Nosepass only when her first Pokemon lost to my Treecko!"

"Even when facing Ash, she had used Nosepass for last..." May said, remembering the battle of two years before. "What does she have in mind?"

Max, however, quickly shook himself out of his surprise and called his first Pokemon on the field. "Hmmm... alright, then! It's your turn, Ledyba!"

Now it was Roxanne's turn to be surprised as Max's graceful ladybug Pokemon appeared in a flash of light, her wings spread and ready for battle. That wasn't the choice Roxanne had expected for a battle against a Rock-type Pokemon... but maybe Max had some interesting strategy in mind! "Hmmm, a peculiar choice, I have to say... but I still think it will be an exciting battle! Very well... Nosepass, open up with Rock Throw!"

"Ledyba, counter with Agility! You have to dodge that!" Max ordered, hoping that his Bug / Flying Pokemon could avoid that dangerous attack. His strategy was riding on that...

Luckily, if Ledyba had an advantage over Nosepass, it lied in her superior speed: as Nosepass picked up some rocks from the floor and tossed them at the giant ladybug, she reacted with a swift sideways dodge and began flying in circles over the arena, quickly enough to leave Nosepass dazzled. However, Roxanne did not seem worried - she had predicted that Max would resort to such a strategy, and she just had to work her own fighting style around that.

"No problem, we still have more cards to play..." the young Gym Leader said to herself. As soon as Ledyba stopped speeding around and began her descent, Roxanne picked the right moment and gave another order. "Alright, Nosepass... use Harden!"

"_Nose!_" the strange Rock-type Pokemon exclaimed. Its granite-hard body shone for a second and solidified even more than it already was. However, Ledyba and Max were not impressed with that, and attacked themselves.

"We have our own ways to catch you off guard too!" the boy exclaimed. "Ledyba, attack with Mach Punch!"

The ladybug Pokemon seemed to wink out of existence for a split second before reappearing in front of Nosepass and unleashing a flurry of blows with her small gloved hands, hitting the opponent's face and nose. Despite its defenses having been strenghtened by the earlier Harden attack, the attack still did quite a bit of damage, forcing Nosepass to step backwards and raise its arms in a guarding position. However, Nosepass immediately countered with a well-placed Tackle attack, forcing Ledyba to the ground. The ladybug yelped and got up as soon as she could, and took to the air once again as she looked for a blind spot in her adversary's defense.

"Concentrate on defense, Ledyba! Use Reflect!" Max called out. The Bug / Flying Pokemon stopped in midair and moved her gloved hands in front of herself, creating an invisible energy shield in front of herself. However, Nosepass did not seem to want to attack on the spot, which had Max somewhat worried. What was Roxanne planning?

"Not bad, Max, not bad at all!" the Gym Leader complimented her opponent. "I see you've been training your Ledyba quite well, but I know a thing or two as well! Nosepass, attack with Rock Tomb!"

"Wha...? Be careful, Ledyba! Dodge that attack!" Max exclaimed. But this time, the ladybug Pokemon was just a second too late as Nosepass, with a single wave of its hand, summoned a bunch of tombstone-shaped stones all around Ledyba, and dropped them on top of her! The giant ladybug was hit and took considerable damage, despite having protected herself with Reflect, and she was dragged down to the rocky floor by the strength of the blow, before being surrounded by more stone slabs that hindered her movements.

"Man, this is not going too well for Max..." May murmured, gritting her teeth. Now it was Nosepass' turn to be in advantage... the young girl could only hope her younger brother had a Plan B for such situations.

Max himself could see that he was being driven into a corner. Speed was pretty much the only advantage Ledyba had on Nosepass, and with that taken away, the Bug / Flying Pokemon was finding that things looked rather grim. Another such attack, and she would quite probably have been knocked out...

"Guess I need to use my contingency plan..." Max told himself. "It's not a foolproof plan, but I guess it's worth the risk now...". As Nosepass got ready to use another Rock Throw against his opponent, Max got to work and hoped Ledyba was still quick enough to pull this off. "Ledyba, let's change tactics! Aim well and hit him with Supersonic!"

Roxanne frowned in worry... and grit her teeth as the giant ladybug aimed her antennae at Nosepass, emitting a sequence of sonic waves that reached the rock-type Pokemon. At once, Nosepass seemed to get even stiffer than it already was, then began swaying from side to side... before throwinng itself with all of its might against a large stone jutting out of the arena, demolishing it! The Supersonic attack has confused Nosepass, but Max knew it was just buying Ledyba some time, and that if he and his Pokemon hadn't taken advantage of that opportunity, they would not get a second chance.

"And now, Ledyba.. use Mach Punch again!" he ordered. The ladybug Pokemon nodded, gathered all of her remaining strength, and leapt over the stone slabs surrounding her, leaping upon Nossepass while it was trying to shake off the confusion. Several attacks connected, staggering the stone Pokemon... and finally, a right hook hit Nosepass right between its eyes and dropped it! The strange stony Pokemon tried to get up once again... and finally slumped helplessly to the floor, stunned and exhausted, giving Max and Ledyba the win!

"Yay! Nicely done, little bro!" May cheered. Hilde, genuinely impressed by Max's skill, nodded in agreement as Roxanne recalled her defeated Nosepass.

"You did good all the same, Nosepass!" the young Gym Leader congratulated her Pokemon. "Well, Max, I have to admit you caught me off guard. Few ever managed to defeat my Nosepass like that. But I'd like to see if you can do the same to my next Pokemon... your turn, Anorith!"

"Anorith?" Hilde murmured to herself in wonder. In fact, none of them had expected the strange Pokemon that had now popped out of Roxanne's second Pokeball: it was some sort of prehistoric crustacean monster with a greyish-green shell, four pairs of paddle-like paws on the sides of his body, a rather large head, and huge gleaming eyes, one on each side of the head. He had a pair of sickle-like jaws, and a short tail with a pair of grey stingers, and despite not being much more than two feet long, it looked like a very tenacious and capable combatant. It was a Pokemon May and Max had already seen, albeit only in passing... while Hilde had no idea what he was, and ended up consulting her Pokedex. "I've never seen that Pokemon before... what is that?"

"_Anorith. The Old Shrimp Pokemon, Bug / Rock type. Revived from a fossil thanks to the advances of science. It can swim fast thanks to its eight paddle-like paws, who also allow it to move about on the ground._" the electronic encyclopaedia droned, revealing something the girl didn't know.

"What's this about? Is it possible to revive extinct Pokemon from fossils? This is news to me..." she wondered.

"Yes, it's one of the most recent achievements of science... I'm not an expert, but I do know that they start out from fossilized DNA to regenerate a whole Pokemon." May explained. "It's not a very common practice, and not very many people use fossil Pokemon to fight... that's why seeing Roxanne use one surprised us."

Max, on the other hand, was trying to think of a way to allow his weakened Ledyba to at least get some advantage on the living fossil Pokemon, who was now dashing from one side of the arena to the other, on those eight paws which didn't look like they were capable of moving him that fast. That was shaping up to be a tough battle, but if he and Ledyba played their cards well...

However, Roxanne didn't leave him enough time to think of a strategy, considering she already knew what to do! "And I've got one more surprise for you, I'm afraid! Anorith, use Rock Tomb again!" she ordered. The prehistoric shellfish concentrated hard, as more stone slabs appeared around Ledyba and fell upon her! The giant ladybug squeaked in surprise as one of the rocks hit her in the back, and she was slammed on the rocky ground, stunned and out cold.

"Man, he didn't even have time to give an order..." Hilde murmured. The young girl was secretly happy that she didn't have to face that Pokemon in her fight... she was not sure she would have won, if Anorith had come out.

"And now Max only has one Pokemon left... they're perfectly matched!" May stated. "But I'm afraid... that Anorith won't be an easy opponent even for Mudkip..."

Max groaned in disappointment as he saw his Pokemon fall, and recalled her in her Pokeball. "Nothing to it... come back, Ledyba!" he said, before smiling to his Pokemon as soon as she was safe back in her sphere. "Don't worry about that, Ledyba! You still did a great job, I should have thought faster... Alright, guess it's time to pull out all the stops. Your turn, Mudkip!"

A precise throw and a flash of lightning later, the Water Pokemon appeared on the battlefield, right in front of Anorith, and squatted on all fours in an attempt to look threatening - which wasn't easy to do for a cute blue Pokemon barely more than one foot long! "_Mudkip!"_ the Water starter said, briefly glaring at Anorith before turning to his trainer and winking. "_Mud mudkip, kip mud mud kip mudkip!_"

"I know you'll do your best, Mudkip! You can count on me!" Max assured his Pokemon with a smile and a thumbs-up. "And we'll be starting now! Mudkip, attack with Mud Slap!"

Mudkip was quick to obey... but theancient Pokemon and his trainer seemed to have been expecting that, and as soon as Roxanne motioned to him to dodge, Anorith moved away by paddling away on his myriad paws, and Mudkip's squirt of mud splashed uselessly on the floor.

"Anorith, don't get distracted... and respond with Rock Tomb again!" Roxanne answered, falling back on a move that could have had some significant effect upon Max's Pokemon. Anorith concentrated once again and created more jagged rocks above Mudkip's head, but the small Water-type was able to dodge in time and got away safely as the stony blades plunged in the ground a few feet away from him. Mudkip hid behind a stony stalagmite, then, as Max motioned for him to move, he emerged from behind it and attacked again!

"And now, Mudkip, hit him with Water Gun!" Max exclaimed. His starter took aim and sprayed his opponent with water, but the crustacean was once again faster than Max anticipated and got away from the attack, hiding behind one of the boulders created by his own Rock Tomb attack. He was only reached by a few inoffensive sprays, and Max wrinkled his nose - his strategy wasn't turning out to work all that well, and he had to work something out to make up for that...

"Perfect job, Anorith, you're doing great!" Roxanne told her ace Pokemon. "And now... strike back with Metal Claw!"

The prehistoric shellfish got on one of the rocks as soon as Mudkip's Water Gun wore out... then, he opened his mandibles, which shone in a metallic light, and pounced on Mudkip. The cute fish Pokemon tried getting away, but the shrimp Pokemon was still able to reach him and struck him viciously with iron-hard mandibles! Mudkip screeched in pain and fell to the ground, rolling away in order to put a safe distance between himself and his opponent.

"It's not going so well..." Max murmured to himself, as even May and Hilde followed every movement with the utmost attention, impatient to see how the boy would have gotten out of that sticky situation. "I need to find a way to stop those mandibles... but how? If only I managed to hinder his movements... hold on a sec, maybe I got it!"

"Mudkip!" Max instructed him, just as Anorith was getting ready to strike him with another Metal Claw attack. "Wait for him to get close! Stay where you are, and get ready to strike back!"

Mudkip looked at his trainer for a second, wondering what he had in mind. That was pretty much what Roxanne herself was wondering... up until then, her opponent had tried to keep his Pokemon away from Anorith, as not to be vulnerable to his powerful attacks, but now he had changed his strategy, seeking to get close and personal... still, it was a good chance to end the battle in her favor, and Mudkip didn't seem to have a lot of moves capable of harming Anorith... so, she guessed that it was worth it to run some risks. "Alright, since this is how you want it, Max... Go, Anorith! End this fight with another Metal Claw!"

"_Rith!_" the huge shellfish answered. As Mudkip moved away a little, preparing to receive the attack, Anorith began paddling in his direction with his numerous paws, and launched himself at his opponent, his mandibles shining ominously in the artificial light of the Gym. This time, however, Max would not be caught off-guard... or at least, that was what May and Hilde hoped, as they kept watching with their fingers crossed...

"Okay, little bro... I just hope you know what you're doing..." May said to herself. As Anorith closed the distance and tried to pounce on his prey, Max gave his order with perfect timing!

"Mudkip! Use Mud Sport, now!" he exclaimed. Mudkip quickly raised his head and breathed out a squirt of mud, striking Anorith in the face and the underbelly, staining his armor and spraying even his eyes and paws. At the same time, the mud also fell on Mudkip, creating some sort of crude armor around his body! Anorith, surprised and startled, landed short of the intended distance and tried to use his Metal Claw all the same, but the mud he had been immersed him was making his movements difficult, and his paws were having trouble moving as fast as he would have liked. "_Rith! Riiiiith!_" he screeched in frustration, looking at his trainer as if he hoped she could do something about his predicament. Roxanne herself was caught unprepared by that little trick Max had pulled, and she was trying to think of a way out of that... but she was so surprised that she couldn't do much!

"Unbelievable! You... you understood how Anorith's paws worked, and you deduced that he was going to be impeded by the mud?" the young GYm Leader exclaimed.

Max smiled, pleased to have guessed right, and answered her question. "Well, I'm not ashamed to say that I'm proud of my observation skills!" he stated, pushing his glasses back. "Just by looking at Anorith's paws, I thought they could push him at great speed both through the water or on the ground... but when Anorith was in a more dense substance, it would have been more difficult for them to move! And it looks like I was right."

"Wow..." Hilde stated, sincerely impressed. "And here I thought he was too much of a sftie to be a good trainer..."

As Anorith thrashed about in order to free himself from the sticky mud, Max and Mudkip got ready for the deciding blow. "And now... Mudkip, get close to Anorith and shoot a full-powered Water Gun! We have to take him down now!" he exclaimed, his finger pointing to his opponent. The small air-breathing fish nodded, his ever-present smile widening, and got closer to Anorith before he could react, shooting a zero-distance gout of water! The crustacean screeched loudly as he was hit mercilessly with the high-pressure jet of water, lifting him from the mud and sending him airborne for a short while, before slamming him on a nearby rock! Then, the azure fish kept up the attack, keeping Anorith half-crushed under the strength of the water... until the prehistoric Pokemon slumped to the ground, his paws limp at the sides of his body, and his eyes comically spinning in their orbits. Anorith tried to stand up again, then he sighed in defeat and fell to the ground, exhausted.

The battle had ended... with Max's victory!

"Yay! We did it! Great job, Mudkip!" the young boy cheered, as Mudkip turned to him and squeaked in joy, his gills opening and closing rythmically. May clapped her hands enthusiastically, while Hilde nodded as she took a mental note of every strategy Max had used during that battle. It was a realy spectacular fight... and Max had done better than she ever expected" Yeah, she had to admit the boy was quite skilled, even though she hadn't thought much of him at first.

After an instant of surprise, Roxanne smiled, accepting her defeat, and recall Anorith in his sphere. "You still did a good job of it, Anorith... come back, you earned your rest!" she said, winking at the Pokeball containing the tired prehistoric shellfish, before turning to Max. "As for you, Max... congratulations! Few people ever managed to face me with such skill! I see you've been studying Pokemon ever since you came here with Ash and your sister, right?"

"Well, modesty aside, I tried to be as prepared as possible!" Max answered, hugging his cheering Mudkip without caring too much about the mud that was splattering his clothes. "It seems it did pay off... but even getting experience on the field was very useful! Without that, I would never have had this idea..."

"Hehehee... it's like I always say; studying is important, but it's worth nothing if you can't use in practice what you learned!" the young Gym Leader concluded. She walked over to Max and handed him a rectangular-shaped badge. "And, as proof that you defeated me, I confer you the Stone Badge. Be proud of this... it's your first Badge ever, and your first step on the way to becoming a Pokemon champion!"

"Thanks, Roxanne, it was a great fight!" Max thanked her, after receiving the prize for his victory. Then, Mudkip still held in his arms, he turned to May and Hilde, holding the badge high in the air! "Aaaand... here's my first Hoenn League badge! How's this as a beginning?"

"None too shabby, little bro! None too shabby at all!" May answered astutely. "Hehehee... looks like someone has done his homework here! Who knows, maybe, if you're really, really lucky, you might even catch up to Ash or me, who knows?"

"Still, I have to admit... congratulations, Max, you really did earn that badge." Hilde affirmed as she nodded to the boy. Her normally aloof expression seemed to have softened up a little, and he was even smiling faintly in approval. "I guess from now on, I'll have to consider you as a worthy rival, huh? I'm curious to see who collects all the Hoenn badges first..."

Max scratched his temple with his free index finger, somewhat surprised by how Hilde now seemed rather different from the one he was used to. Now, she really seemed interested in being his main rival! Not really knowing how to answer to that, Max tried to be diplomatic at least. "Er... well, I'm glad you feel that way... but I think it's a little premature, considering I only have one badge as of now. We'll have to wait and see what happens later, don't you think so?"

Hilde crossed her arms on her chest and shrugged, still smiling slightly. "Well, I have only one badge as well, after all. Though I don't think I had it as hard as you just did! So... I'm okay with how things turned out for now, but next time we meet... I'll show you how much stronger I've become! See you next time, Max... and keep training, because I'm not going to hold anything back! See ya!"

Waving her hand, Hilde turned and walked away and out of the Gym, under Roxanne and the two siblings' surprised eyes. That was definitely not how Max expected Hilde to react, but considering Hilde seemed to have gotten some newfound respect for Max as a trainer, it wasn't a bad thing... right?

"I know I already said it once, little bro... but that girl is weird!" May commented. "You sure know some strange people, huh?"

Max chuckled sarcastically. "Yeah, right, sis... this coming from the girl whose rivals are a rose-obsessed prettyboy, and a purple-haired buffoon who looks like a girl..." he snarked, causing his sister to look at him oddly.

"Hahaha, how funny, Max..." she retorted. "You ought to have been a comedian, instead of a Pokemon trainer..."

**oooooooooo**

And somewhere else in Hoenn, an effeminate guy with long, curly purple hair sneezed loudly, feeling that someone was talking about him...

**oooooooooo**

"Still..." Roxanne commented, going from surprised to relaxed in a few seconds' time. "I have to admit I was quite impressed by both of you. You have a lot of potential, which means we'll be seeing some fireworks at this year's Hoenn League Championship! Congratulations, Max, both you and your friend have done really well!"

"Thanks, Roxanne... and we're not going to stop her either!" the young boy answered. "Now, I'll add a few more Pokemon to my team, and when they have gotten strong enough, we're going to face Brawly, Dewford Town's Gym Leader! I just hope Hilde won't get there before me again..."

"Oh, so you ARE a little worried about her being better than you are, huh?" May commented with a slight smirk...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Author's Note: Maybe this chapter was a little rushed, but as I said, I had very little time to work with. Anyway, I hope the fight with Roxanne was decent. Next time, I'll be back with Ash and his friends as they make their way to Boon Island, where some special training awaits for them... as well as the return of a familiar old face!**

**See you soon! The writing of this story will resume after the 5th of August! **


	22. Mooring at Boon

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! As you can see, I'm back in business, and after spending a little time with Max and May in Hoenn, now we get back to following Ash and his friends in Sevii Islands! And while we're here, we'll end up seeing how Paul and his Torterra fared against that Drapion in Mt. Silver... and what surprise fate has in store for our favourite (?) purple-haired jerk. Again, I apologize for the long break, and I trust I'll be able to whip out Chapter 23 in less time, possibly even halfway next week!**

**For now, enjoy this chapter, and if you can, tell me how I did!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 22 - Mooring at Boon**

Onboard a ship headed to Boon Isand, the second of the seven islands of the Sevii archipelago, a familiar group of trainers was busy musing about what they would find at their next stop... or, in the case of the two girls in the team, they were sitting on a bench, in the front part of the ship, and were chatting between them as Boon Island's sea port was getting closer and closer. From their position, Misty and Dawn could clearly see the buildings of the coastal city, and a large golden beach upon which, despite the fact that the sun was already setting, some umbrellas and swimmers could still be seen. But this wasn't what the two were discussing, as Misty had wanted to ask Dawn about that Togekiss she had seen during the battle against Moltres and J's flying machine...

"Say, Dawn... I'd like to ask you something, if it's no problem with you." Misty started, as her eyes idly wandered to the beach.

Dawn turned to her slightly. "Hm? Okay, Misty, tell me... what is it?"

The redhead sighed, feeling a pang of sadness as she remembered the Pokemon she had been a mother to. "That Pokemon you sent against J's flying machine... what was she called... oh, right, Togekiss! Could you tell me something about her? Where did you find her? How did you capture her?"

A little surprised by the question, Dawn hesitated for a short moment before answering. "Well... I got that Pokemon towards the end of my initiation journey..." she answered, rubbing her chin. "It was one day, when I met a girl about my age and looking almost exactly like me, one Princess Salvia... she wanted to spend one day like an everyday person, and take part in a coordinator competition along with her Togekiss. So, when we met by pure accident, we decided to... swap identities for a day, so that she could take part in a competition. For my part, I had to put up with all that high-class etiquette and stuff... ugh, really not my thing!"

The girls giggled a little, interrupting the conversation for a second before Dawn went on. "Still, it was worth it at the end. Salvia won the competition, and then she let me have her Togekiss, who allowed me to win several rounds at the Grand Festival! So... yeah, Togekiss is a part of my team and my family now!"

"I see..." Misty said as she smiled melanchonically. "You know, Dawn, I asked you that because I used to have a Togepi once... Togekiss' first pre-evolved form... I found him when he was still just an egg, towards the end of our journey through Kanto... and I looked after him for a long time, but in the end, I had to set him free when he evolved into a Togetic... it was... quite a sad moment for me, as you can imagine... and seeing a Pokemon so similar to my Togepi after all this time, well, it brought back a lot of memories for me!"

Dawn looked surprised, than a little downcast. "Oh... I see... I'm sorry, Misty, I didn't know you had a Togepi once, and... sorry, didn't want to bring up sad memories." she said, feeling a little guilty.

Still, Misty immediately reassured her. "No, no... it was not your fault at all!" the Water Pokemon expert quickly said. "It's just that seeing that Pokemon, at that moment... but don't worry, you had no way of knowing! Rather the contrary, I was glad to see your Togekiss, she's a magnificent Pokemon!"

"You really think so?" Dawn beamed, her eyes wide with joy. "Well... what can I say... thanks, I'm really glad you do! It's one of the Pokemon I'm the proudest of! And... I hope I can train her better, for the next competitions I'll take part in!"

"If that's the case, we can take our time, now that we're visiting Boon Island, to train a little, right?" Misty answered with a wink, her spunk back in full force. As Dawn nodded, the two girls noticed Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Gary walked to them, just as the ship began boarding the coastline and approaching the port.

"Hey, girls! Are my ears playing tricks on me, or did I just hear you speak about training?" Ash asked, his ever-present smile on his face.

"Oh, there you are, guys!" Misty said, turning to the guys. "Dawn and I were just wondering where you had gone... Anyway, yes, Dawn would like to train her Pokemon for the next contests, especially her Togekiss. And I would like to shake some cobwebs off of myself, it's been a while since I last trained seriously..."

As if he felt himself being called, Psyduck spontaneously popped out of his Pokeball and appeared in front of Misty and Dawn, his head swaying for side to side, and his eyes staring vacantly! "_Psy-ay-ayyy..._" he quacked, turning to his trainer as if begging her to let him do some practice as well...

Misty sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Ugh... as if I could ever forget about you..." she caustically answered. "Okay, okay, just don't give me an headache as well... I'll have you train a little after we get there, you happy with that?"

"_Psy?_" the psychic duck quacked, unsure about it all...

"You're surprisingly permissive towards Psyduck as of late, Misty..." Brock noted with a small smile, as he looked nostalgically at the weird duck Pokemon. After all, Psyduck, too, was a part of the times they had spent together... "Can I ask you why, Misty? You convinced yourself that he has the potential to be a great Pokemon, right?"

"More like, since I can't win or even draw with this stupid duck, I might as well just give up now and let him train like he wants, right?" Misty answered with another annoyed sigh. "Anyway, what about you, guys? I guess you'll be spending our stay in this island to get your own Pokemon some training..."

"Exactly." Gary answered, playing with a Pokeball. "We're especially curious about this Move Tutor Phoebe told us about. She told us our Pokemon could learn some pretty strong moves from her. And so... here we are! Ash and I will speak to this Move Tutor about giving our Pokemon a little of her special training, while Brock here wants to ask her about his new Pokemon and that move Gible can use. Now that I think of it, my Blastoise has not been fighting for a while... guess it's time to have him back on top, huh?"

"Hehehee... me, I'd like to see which of our Pokemon will be stronger after we train them here! Your Blastoise... or one of my own starters!" Ash mused, having yet not chosen which of his starter Pokemon would get the special training. "Wouldn't be a bad idea to challenge each other... just like the good old times, huh?"

Gary smiled cockily. "It will be a pleasure Ashy-boy... of course, you already know that I will be the winner, right?" he answered, not resisting the temptation of restoking their old rivalry just a little. The two childhood friends looked at each other with determination, and red flames burst from the background, in an all-too-dramatic fashion!

Misty sighed and turned to an amazed Dawn. "Never mind that, Dawn. When those two get started, there's no stopping them!" she stated, as Psyduck kept staring blankly at the two friendly rivals. The ship was getting closer to Boon Island's port, and their new destination...

**oooooooooo**

The battle between Paul's Torterra and the wild Drapion had been going on for a while, and it seemed to be reaching its conclusion: both Pokemon were still facing each other, clearly tired but still full of fighting spirit... and while he was not showing that, Paul was quite impressed with Drapion's performance and by his tenacity: rarely he had seen a Pokrmon being able to put his starter on the ropes, and that meant Drapion was a worth Pokemon to have in his team! Still, he needed to see the end of the battle...

Drapion took a pair of quick breaths and, in a last-ditch attempt to bring down Paul's Torterra, he dashed at him, raising his razor-sharp claws... and then bringing them down in a vicious Cross Poison attack! However, Torterra was able to minimize damage by simply turning around a little, so that Drapion's claws only hit his incredibly hard shell. Then, with a speed that once again seemed impossible for its size, Torterra turned around and headbutted Drapion in his abdomen, cutting off his air supply and knocking him down. The scorpion Pokemon tried to stand up again, but he was rather slow to do so, because of the many hits he had taken, and even if he was rather fatigued himself, Torterra was able to take advantage of that time to make his last move.

"Hmm... I have to admit, that Drapion put up a better fight than I thought." Paul said to himself, smiling grimly. "He's certainly nothing to sneeze at, if he managed to give this much trouble to Torterra... fine, then! Torterra, wrap this up with Earthquake!"

The gigantic tortoise was more than happy to oblige, and after standing on his rear paws for a moment, he quickly dropped down with all of his weight, causing a deafening rumbling noise and causing the ground to shake around him. Drapion was unable to dodge the shockwaves, and was hit and thrown around like a rag doll, before one last blow lifted him up in the air and finally slammed him, exhausted and defenceless, into the dusty ground. The giant scorpion tried to stand up again, holding on to a pair of jutting stones with his claws... but as he saw Paul getting closer, an empty Pokeball in his hands, he managed to smile despite being tired and aching all over. It seemed he had managed to impress the young trainer...

"Not bad at all. Few Pokemon have ever brought my Torterra on the brink of defeat." Paul said. He threw his Pokeball, and Drapion smiled in satisfaction and let himself be absorbed inside, putting up no resistance as the sphere began swaying and eventually stopped. Paul then picked up the Pokeball, nodded in approval, and hung it to his belt, firmly intending to start training him the next day. "You did an okay job as well, Torterra. Enough for today, you can come back."

"_TOR!_" Torterra nodded as he was recalled. Paul put his strongest Pokemon's sphere back in its place as well and, seeing that dusk had already fallen, it might have been a good idea to end his training session there, for that day, and begin his journey back to the Pokemon Center. He was already on his way... when a slow clapping of hands coming from his side drew his attention, and forced him to stop and look around himself to see who was there.

"Brilliant. Truly brilliant." A smug, condescending voice commented on Paul's performanc. As the annoyed purple-haired young man turned around, he was greeted with the sight of a slight, shaved, somewhat haggard man in his forties, with short brown hair and a barely-visible beard on his face, smiling at him in a manner both affable and disquieting, and wearing a uniform similar to those used by Team Rocket... only, the R emblazoned on the chest was turned around, as though seen in a mirror. "I have to say, you were not half bad, young man. Not everyone can train a Torterra that well, and the Drapion you caught was not a joke, either. You do have the potential to become a great trainer!"

"Who are you?" Paul cut to the chase. "How did you arrive here? You're not an offical trainer, so... how could you even gain access to Mt. Silver?"

The man threw his head back and laughed joyously, amused by the younger man's annoyed tone. "Hahahahaaa! No need to get so defensive, boy, I only came here... to make a proposal to you, for lack of a better term! After all, you're a very skilled trainer, and wasting a talent like yours would be a sin, don't you agree?"

Paul was still unconvinced as he glared at the mysterious man. Whoever he was, he was probably part of one of those organizations popping up like mushrooms lately...

"First off, allow me to introduce myself." the man stated. "My name is Cezar, and I'm an high-standing member of Team Vicious, the new organization that will soon be known and feared throughout the world! And as for my proposal, well... how about you join us?"

Once again, Paul had no visible reaction, excluding frowning in suspicion. He was totally unconvinced about that guy, and Cezar seemed to understand that, as he switched to another topic in order to convince Paul...

"Think about it, you've only got to gain from that! You're one of the best trainers your age in the whole continent of Sinnoh..." the Team Vicious agent went on. "If you weren't, you wouldn't have gotten second place in the Sinnoh Conference, right? Well, then just think how much stronger you'd get if you joined us! First off, you could get your revenge on Ash Ketchum, that impudent little boy who defeated and humiliated you... and who's getting to be a pain in the neck for us too..."

"How do you know so much about Ash Ketchum and me?" Paul harshly asked, never dropping his guard.

Cezar dodged the question with a simple laugh. "Hahahaaa... now, now, why would that be important? I'll just say that Team Vicious has its methods..." he answered. "But still... think about it: don't you think it's a great idea? With your abilities, you'd soon get to be a commander of Team Vicious! Not just that... you'd have the best and the strongest Pokemon to choose from to form an invincible team, and get your revenge on the little brat who defeated you! As the saying goes, you wash our backs, we wash yours! You'd be famous, feared and respected everywhere, and everyone would be in awe of you..."

"I'm not interested." Paul said, without even stopping to reflect upon it.

Cezar was still smiling, but it was a forced smile now. He tilted his head on one side, his affable expression never once faltering. "Hmm? What was that? Did you just say... no?" he asked, as if he could not believe Paul had refused such a deal.

"You heard me. I said I'm not interested." Paul shot back, getting more threatening. "I have no need for your tampering and cheap tricks to defeat Ash Ketchum. I will become the strongest trainer in all Sinnoh, and I will get the title of champion... but I'll do it with my own strength. Shortcuts are for losers."

Again, Cezar did not really seem to mind all that much: he just shrugged and gave a smug smile. "Oh, well, the choice is yours. We gave you a big chance, and you blew it." he answered. "Very well... but remember that actions have consequences. For now, we have to part ways... but rest assured that you've not seen the last of us. And you'll realize the power you foolishly gave up. Xatu!"

The Team Vicious trainer produced a Pokeball and opened it, letting out a condor-like Pokemon about five feet tall, white wings with red and black motives wrapped around his body, and forming a face-like drawing. His head was round, covered with short green feathers, with blank almond-shaped eyes and two longer red feathers on top of his head, and he had a sharp, hooked beak. Paul recognized the creature - it was a Xatu, a Psychic / Flying type Pokemon endemic of Johto.

"Xatu, Tleport us back to home base. And you, Paul... this is all for now." Cezar said, still smiling that calm, self-assured smile of his that was grating on the purple-haired trainer's nerves. "But don't think you can escape Team Vicious, now that you decided to oppose us. Of course, you can always change your minf. It would be a shame to kill someone as skilled as you, no? Hahahaaaa!"

Cezar and his Xatu winked out of sight a second later in a blinding flash of light, before Paul could do anything to stop them, leaving the purple-haired trainer alone on the clearing. Unimpressed with the threat, Paul stood there glaring at the place where Cezar had disappeared, then shrugged and went back on his way.

"Hmph. Whatever those idiots say." he said to himself. "If they're asking for trouble, I'll be ready to greet them."

**oooooooooo**

"Here we are, girls! Finally back to Snowpoint City!" Maylene happily cheered as, standing above a small snow-covered hilltop, she looked to the horizon. From where she was standing, it was possible to see Snowpoint City's buildings and port, and while the city seemed to be still disorganized from the calamity that had struck it, it was also a lot more active than a few days ago.

Zoey and Candice joined the diminutive martial artist and looked in the same direction, happy to see the place they had startedtheir journey from. "Great! We're here, at last..." Candice said with an hopeful smile. "And thankfully, I can see things seem to be going okay... there haven't been more problems while we were away!"

"The citizens have gotten their act together... and are rebuilding everything!" Zoey noted as she looked to the city. It wasn't that clear from where she was standing, but she could see that the reconstruction work was going on smoothly, and morale seemed high. Despite all that had happened, Snowpoint City seemed active and lively once again. The girls looked at each other in approval and, with Candice taking the lead, they quickened their pace towards their goal. Shortly after, the three trainers had arrived at the outskirts of the snowy town, where they found a cheering crowd of enthusiastic people who were applauding the local heroines... and Zoey's attempts at geting away from the maelstorm of congratulations were doomed to failure!

"They're back! The Gym Leader and her friends are back!"

"You did it, girls!"

"Congratulations! I knew you could do it!"

These and similar joyful exclamations surrounded Zoey and the two Gym Leader as soon as they set foot on the paved road. The crowd had gathered around them, and the three friends were trying to make their way, not without some trouble, between two wings of enthusiastic people - both human and Pokemon.

"Er... thanks... thanks a lot..." a rather embarassed Zoey murmured. She wasn't the kind of person who shied away from popularity, but she thought all those people were overdoing it a little... "We... didn't do anything that great, really! We... just followed those criminals back to their home base... and we chased them away!"

"We don't have to worry about avalaches any more!" Candice went on, as she received hugs and handshakes from her fellow citizens. "The... Gym will reopen starting tomorrow, and I'll be continuing my job as a Gym Leader! I got myself a rather long vacation... and a rather hectic one, at that!"

"Anyway..." the voice of Candice's father was heard, and the crowd parted slightly to allow the man to pass and hug his daughter. "You and your friends have averted a terrible threat to this city's safety... you three ought to be proud of yourselves! I'm sure... that those people who were sadly lost to us can now rest in peace thanks to your heroic act. Congratulation, Candice... you and your friends have really honored your name today!"

Candice smiled and nodded, but she did feel a pang of sadness at the thought that, despite the fact that the menace had been vanquished, some people had lost their lives because of Team Vicious' plans. "Thanks, Daddy... we just did what we had to do. And... sadly, we only won a battle, and those criminals are still lurking somewhere else." she stated. "Their boss escaped, and I'm sure we'll hear about them again soon."

"Seems like they're trying to capture Legendary Pokemon..." Maylene added. "At least, that's what some of them revealed to us that they were trying to capture Regice, the Ice Golem. But we don't know what they plan to do with them. Nothing good, that's for sure..."

"We need to keep an eye out on those guys..." Zoey thought out loud, thinking of her best friend who, at the moment, was in Kanto. She was hoping Dawn, along with Ash and Brock, was doing well enough and had not been entangled in Team Vicious' web. "I'm afraid we only got a smalll taste of what those people can do..."

**oooooooooo**

The next day, on Boon Island...

As the sun was rising in the clear blue sky, a familiar trio of trainers was already on their way through a dusty road zigzagging through the woods: Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Gary had gotten up early that morning, in order to be able to take their time on their way to the northmost part of the Sevii archipelago, where the Move Tutor they were looking for was living. It was clear that not many people walked on that road, and Ash found himself wondering why - he had expected that someone who could teach Pokemon some very useful moves would be sought after by a lot more people...

"Phew... here we are!" Gary commented, stopping briefly to regain his breath after a rather steep part. "This place is kinda desolate, if you ask me... not very many people must be using this road, huh?"

"That's pretty much what I was thinking..." Ash said, agreeing with his childhood rival and friend. "It's not that bad a place, even if it's a little solitary... and it's not as hot as it is downtown!"

Brock laid his backpack on the ground, thinking that it was time to take a small break. "Okay, guys, I think we can stop for a while." he said, before massaging his own back. "Well, I have to agree with Ash, this place doesn't really look any worse than several other places I've seen during our journey."

Ash shrugged. "Oh, well. Not that I'm really interested about the reason why this place is so desolate... I am more interested in seeing this Move Tutor and get some training! I can't wait!"

"By the way, Ash... since you've been taking your starters, I take it you haven't decided which one of them will get the special training, right?" Brock asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. His friend sighed and rubbed his forehead, being forced to admit that, in fact, he hadn't even thought of that...

"I'm not sure, Brock... I was thinking either Sceptile or Infernape, but I still haven't decided..." he affirmed. "I guess I'll be choosing on the fly, I have no idea right now..."

"_Pika pi! Pika pika chu!_" Pikachu squeaked all of a sudden, pointing between the trees on the side of the road. The forest was not quite as thick there, and it was possible to catch a glimpse of what lied beyond the woods...

"Hm? What's up, Pikachu?" Ash asked as he reached his best friend. Brock and Gary did the same, and the yellow rodent motioned for them to look in the direction he was pointing to, through an opening in the trees. The three of them did so... and stood there in wonder at the awesome sight that presented itself in front of them: from their position, it was possible to see a good chunk of the coastline where Boon Island's residential areas had been built, with spectacular golden beaches and a graceful little town neatly bisected by a large main road from which several smaller ones departed, in a simple yet functional pattern that connected all parts of the city. Even for that distance, it was possible to see how active the small island was: a busy yet collected come-and-go, as if that place's beauty had somehow calmed its inhabitants... and a striking difference from all the big cities they had been to...

"That's quite a sight..." Brock commented after a few moments of silent awe. "When they say that sometimes we should give ourselves a break and look around ourselves a little, they know what they're saying..."

"_Pikachu pi pika ka pika pikachu, pikachu?_" Pikachu asked as he winked to his trainer, who just sighed and rolled his eyes with a small smile.

"Yeah...I guess Misty and Dawn are having the time of their lives down there..." Ash affirmed. Truth be told, he was a little envious of the fact that his female friends were on the beach right then, while he and his mle friends were climbing those winding little roads. "Who knows what they're doing right now..."

**oooooooooo**

Misty, wearing her orange two-piece swimsuit, took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the salty sea breeze as she walked along the beach, enjoying the feeling of the warm sun on her skin and the hot sand under the soles of her bare feet. It had been so long since she had been to the seaside, and the redhead seemed to be making up for lost time. "Aaaah! I missed the sun, the sea and all the rest!" she commented before turning to Dawn. Both girls were wearing their best swimsuits for the occasion. "Hey, Dawn, you ready? Have you already chosen your Pokemon?"

"Of course I did, Misty!" the blue-haired girl readily answered, her hair already done in a ponytail and wearing a yellow two-piece swimsuit, as she reached her new friend. "And I'm ready whenever you are!"

Misty nodded and motioned for the Sinnoh coordinator to get a little farther away. "Okay then... Dawn, try to leave a little more space between us, and step backwards a little... alright, that's okay! We can start! Misty calls... Psyduck and Starmie!"

The redhead tried to throw her Pokeballs... but in Psyduck's case, she didn't have to do that, as the clumsy psychic duck came out of his Pokeball by himself, as per usual, and plopped in front of his reluctant trainer, just as Starmie materialized a little further away. "Ugh... well, at least the silly duck did come out when I called him..." Misty murmured to herself. "Alright, Dawn, your turn!"

"With pleasure!" Dawn answered. "Buneary, Mamoswine... it's showtime!"

A split second later, the bunny Pokemon and the giganticc boar appeared in front of her, emitting their battle cry, and Dawn winked at them before giving them instructions. "Okay, guys... we'll start doing some training with Misty and her Pokemon... we need to be well trained for the next Grand Festival!"

"_Buneary!_" Buneary answered, agreeing with her trainer. Mamoswine simply nodded, letting out what sounded like a cross between a boar's grunt and an elephant's trumpeting. Dawn clapped her hands and motioned for Misty to start!

"Perfect! Be warned, Dawn, I'm not going to go easy on you!" Misty warned before giving Starmie the first order. "You start this off, Starmie! Attack with Bubblebeam!"

The giant starfish floated in midair and spun around itself for a second before the gem in the middle of its body began glowing and it shot out a rapid barrage of multicolored bubbles, targeting both Buneary and Mamoswine. However, Dawn seemed to already have a counterattack ready. "Well, looks like I'll really have to be serious about this..." she commented. "Buneary, stop those bubbles with your Ice Beam! And you, Mamoswine... use Ancient Power!"

The brown bunny moved her ears, clasped her hands together and shot a beam of freezing energy that intercepted Starmie's Bubblebeam, turning the colored bubbles into icy spheres that floated in the air for a split second before Mamoswine, after having concentrated for a short time, materialized a great number of pieces of stone all around himself and threw them, with lethal accuracy, towards the frozen bubbles. The blow connected, shattering the ice spheres and sending multicolored debris in all directions...

"_Psyyyy..._" Psyduck quacked as he concentrated on the icy fragments flying everywhere. He probably was trying to use his psychic powers to take control of those fragments and move them around in the air... but it all ended comically when a large piece of frozen rock struck him on the head! Misty winced in sympathy pain, but the blow managed to worsen Psyduck's headache, and the duck wobbled a little but remained upright. He glared at Dawn's Pokemon and attempted a Confusion attack directly upon them, but Mamoswine managed to stand his ground and remain in his place... whereas the smaller Buneary was lifted from the ground and slammed right between the gigantic boar's eyes! Mamoswine grunted and stepped backwards, but he quickly shook himself out of his daze and glared at Psyduck. As she noticed the gigantic boar's tendencies. She only hoped Psyduck's clumsy attack hadn't annoyed him too annoyed expression, Dawn couldn't help but wince... as the hairy Ice / Ground Pokemon was rather well-known for his hair-trigger berserker much...

Sadly, her worst fears came true all too soon, as Mamoswine threw his head back and bellowed in rage so loudly that the nearby water was rippled and slightly shaken, causing several tourists who were basking in the sun to turn their heads to the impromptu battle! Dawn tried to salvage the situation, speaking gently yet firmly to the mammoth boar. "Stop it, Mamoswine! Keep your hair on! Remember what we both learned..."

But Mamoswine was already dead set on making Psyduck pay: with another roar, he charged towards the psychic duck and struck him with the power of a speeding truck, under the disbelieving eyes of both Misty and Dawn and their Pokemon! A well-placed Headbutt attack sent Psyduck flying for a long distance before he fell into the sea, near a bunch of rocks!

"Psyduck!" a worried Misty exclaimed as she and Starmie ran to the duck Pokemon. Dawn blinked, both stupefied and spooked by the power behind Mamoswine's attack, before recalling Mamoswine in his Pokeball and running after Misty, hoping Psyduck wasn't seriously hurt. Misty and Starmie had reached the duck-like Pokemon, crouching in front of him to check if he was well. "Hey, Psyduck, you okay? Don't be an idiot, and answer me!" she asked, one moment before Psyduck stood up as if nothing had happened, shaking hiss head and massaging it with a weirded-out expression!

"_Psy, ay, ay..._" he quacked, his head moving left and right to show that he was okay. Misty and Dawn sighed in relief, and the blue-haired girl apologized on behalf of her Pokemon.

"Gee... I'm sorry, Misty, I didn't think Mamoswine would act up like this..." she said. "Mamoswine was always quite... well... disobedient after evolving from a Swinub, but I thought he had gotten past that..."

Misty was quick to reassure her friend from Sinnoh. "No worries, you have nothing to apologize for..." she affirmed. "It seems to me that Mamoswine just got angry because Psyduck had hit him like that... but don't worry, nothing happened... huh? What's that?"

The Water Pokemon specialist had noticed something unusual near a seaweed-crusted rock emerging from the water, and both she and Dawn walked to the place, curious to see what that was. "What's up, Misty? Did you see something weird?" Dawn asked as she followed the redhead in the shallow water. There was clearly something living near that rock, but it was hard to tell what it was from that distance.

Knee-deep in the salty water, taking care not to step on something sharp, Misty, Dawn and their Pokemon reached the strange object Misty had seen: it was a Pokemon resembling a small manta ray, blue in color all over with a pale azure underbelly and large wings. A weird pair of "antennae" jutted out of her head and swayed slowly with the movement of the waves, and a strange pattern, resembling a smiling face, was drawn on her back... but sadly, the Pokemon herself didn't look like she was up to smiling: she seemed to be very fatigues, and her large coffee-black eyes were half-closed, and her gills opened and closed irregularly, trying to extract as much oxygen as possible from the surrounding waters.

Misty and Dawn reached the distressed Pokemon, who looked at them in suspicion... and they immediately recognized it: a Mantyke, a pre-evolved form of Mantine who had only been discovered recently, known for its friendly demeanor, its swimming speed and its ability to fly for brief distances. In fact, both girls knew that it was a Water / Flying type.

"It's a Mantyke!" Misty exclaimed, stepping warily around the manta ray cub in order not to frighten her. Mantyke turned around as well and glared at the two girls, not knowing whether she could trust them or not. Even in her weakened state, she seemed ready to flee or fight as soon as she could confirm that the newcomers were a threat. Luckily, that wasn't the case, and the two girls simply stood at a safe distance, trying to speak to the small Water Pokemon and earn her trust. "Hey... hello, Mantyke! How are you doing? Don't worry, we don't mean to harm you..."

"We saw you here, and you seemed to be in trouble..." Dawn continued. "What's the matter, Mantyke? Can we help you in some way?"

"_Psy-ay-ay..._" Psyduck quacked. Maybe he wasn't too sure of what was going on, but he still wanted to lend a hand.

The small manta ray Pokemon, understandably, stood back for a few more moments and looked suspiciously at the girls... but, in the situation she was in, she needed to place her trust in Misty, Dawn and their Pokemon, at least as much as they wanted to help her. So, after getting over her natural shyness, the manta ray Pokemon delicately floated towards the Water Pokemon expert and let out a low, vibrant call, similar to a song coming from the depths of the ocean. "_Mantyyyyke..._"

Misty crouched down in the water, soaking herself almost completely, and scratched the Pokemon on her head. "Don't be afraid... Dawn and I are here to help you!" Misty said sweetly. "Now tell me... what's the problem? How can we help you?"

Mantyke moved one of her wing-like flippers, motioning to the open sea she had come from. She seemed to want the two friends and their Pokemon to follow her there...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Author's Note: And so begins the part set in Boon Island, where Ash and his friends are trying to get some special training... and might end up getting more than they thought! Next two chapter will respectively follow the guys and the girls as they try to solve the issues they will be faced with. To be exact, Ash will face some trust issues with one of his Pokemon... and Misty and Dawn will have their hands full helping Mantyke!**

**Much as I hate Paul, I have to give him that much: all the badges he's got, he got them the hard way - he earned them. He's the kind of person who thinks an unfair win doesn't count as a win. Therefore, I couldn't see him accept Team Vicious' offer. Of course, that means he's made an enemy of them...**

**How will all of this go? Well, this chapter ends here, but the next one will be up as soon as I get around to it! See you soon, and leave me a review if you can!**


	23. Special Training

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Here we go again! Once again, we have come to the usual appointment with my very own Pokemon story... and this time, we'll be following Ash, Pikachu, Gary and Brock as they reach their destination: the Move Tutor's house in Boon Island, where they'll hopefully be getting some special training for their Pokemon and some questions about Brock's ever-mysterious Gible. Of course, provided they can get to an agreement with Ash's starters! And on that matter, an old acquaintance will soon take center stage again, and will give us a little surprise!**

**Are you curious yet? Then, I can only hope this chapter delivers on these promises! Again, I leave you to reading the new chapter... have fun and see you at the end!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 23 - Special Training**

"Er... now that we're here, I'm beginning to see why people would be put off by this place... it's not exactly what I would suggest for summer vacations!" Ash affirmed, a large sweatdrop pouring from behind his head, as soon as the team had made their way to their intended destination... which resembled the rest of the idyllic tropical island just as much as a ravenous Tyranitar resembled a graceful Butterfree! It was a huge clearing in the middle of a pine forest, immersed in shade because of the trees surrounding it from every side, with a small, rickety-looking wooden house standing right in the middle of it, a small puff of smoke coming out of the roof. Several agricultural tools were standing against the front wall, obviously to take care of the small vegetable garden near the house... a piece of earth which was just about large enough to sustain a single person... and an old well, with a wooden bucket placed beside it, was visible a little further off. All things considered, the place looked old and abandoned, a far cry from the rest of the island and certainly not the place where someone might be training his Pokemon. Especially considering that Ash and his friends couldn't see any Pokemon around there...

"_Pika..._" Pikachu squeaked, scratching his head. He wasn't too convinced that was the right place himself... but just as he was about to add something else, a dark shadow popped out of seemingly nowhere from behind him, and a raspy, hoarse voice made his yellow fur stand on end!

"Hohohohoo... not so polite, are we, youngsters? It's not a 5-star hotel, but I like to think it's not a bad place!" said an old woman's voice from behind the team! Immediately, Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Gary turned around, finding themselves face to face with a wrinkled, creepy-looking old woman looking not unlike the classical fairytale hag, only a little above five feet tall, and wearing a woolen, drab-colored cardigan, almost managing to hide her among the trees, a long, worn-out skirt and heavy workshoes. Her stringy gray hair was tied in a bun behind her hair, and her wrinkled face was twisted in a satisfied grin. Needless to say, her appearence caused the boys to jump about one foot in the air, turning blue with fear!

"Oh, look what we have here... some aspiring pupils, it would appear! It's been such a long time since anyone came all the way up here!" the old woman chuckled, enjoying her guests' startled expressions. "Then... what's the reason for this courteous visit? You'd like to teach your Pokemon some interesting moves? And... what's with that Pikachu wandering out of his Pokeball?"

"That would be my Pikachu..." Ash protested just as the old woman tried to reach out to the electric mouse, scratching him under the chin with her sharp nail. Pikachu protested as well and squeaked his name in annoyance as his cheek crackled with energy... and luckily for both, the old woman gave up her rather unwelcome display of affection and stood up, clucking again.

"Hahahahaaa! Well, he looks like he's been well-trained, my boy... so, congratulations!" she laughed. "But... I feel the need to inform you that I don't deal with Electric-types, no sir! If you've come here to have your Pikachu learn a new move, you've just wasted your time and energy! On the other hand, if you have some fully-evolved starters, well... in that case, I might have something good to teach them! So... what about it, my dear boys?"

With amazing speed for her advanced age, the woman darted in front of the stunned Ash and Gary, and looked at them straight in their eyes, causing the both of them to step backwards before the young researcher could answer. "Well... yes, actually I have my Blastoise with me... and Ash here has no less than three starters, and hasn't made up his mind yet on who gets the training..."

"But I have another question!" Ash exclaimed in alarm. "You... don't happen to be the one we were told about, right? The... Move Tutor of Boon Island?"

The old woman turned to Ash and smiled in a very disquieting way. "Hehehee... well, my dear boy, just like you youngsters would say... well, duh! You only understood that now? Who were you expecting, the tooth fairy? Yes, I'm the famous Move Tutor of Boon Island, and many trainers have braved these heights so that their Pokemon could learn moves like Frenzy Plant, Blast Burn or Hydro Cannon. None of them was ever disappointed!" she cackled, then abruptly turned to Brock. "And what about you, with that strange face you have? You have a Pokemon you'd like to train as well?"

"_Pika pika pi?_" Pikachu squeaked, somewhat taken off guard by the tone the old woman had used with Brock! The young Rock-type trainer, on the other hand, didn't seem to think much about it and cleared his voice.

"Er... no, ma'am, not at all... actually, I have no Pokemon you would be willing to train..." he answered. "I just wanted to... er... ask you a question about one of my Pokemon, to see if you could help me with one of his moves..."

This time, the Move Tutor's face grew dubious. "Hmmm... that's an interesting one, my boy... so, you are asking me to help you understand one of your Pokemon's moves?" she answered, rubbing her chin in thought. "Very interesting... alright, I'll see what I can do about it! Okay, boys, let your Pokemon out! I'll see what I can do for them!"

"Alright, ma'am..." Ash answered, a little more convinced. He privately thanked the fact that he had had the sense to change the members of his team at the Pokemon Center, then grabbed the Pokeballs belonging to Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape and opened them, allowing the three Pokemon to come out. The old woman nodded in admiration as the red dragon, the bipedal lizard and the flaming chimp all materialized in front of her. They seemed to be very well-trained and powerful Pokemon... and even Gary's Blastoise, coming out a few seconds later, gave that very same vibe. Yeah, those kids weren't fools, that much she had to admit.

A few moments later, Brock let Gible out of his Pokeball... and the small dragon immediately began hopping around, his stubby arms flailing around in happiness as he tried to satisfy both his curiosity and his hunger on whatever looked more interesting to him! Luckily, Brock was fast to recall him with a couple clappings of his hands, and the Dragon / Ground Pokemon hopped at his trainer's side in but a moment's notice, calling out his own name in his shrill voice. "_Gible!_"

"There... good boy, Gible! Just stay here for a little while, and I'll explain to this lady what the problem is, okay?" Brock told his Pokemon. Gible nodded, sporting a wily grin, and the old Move Tutor nodded in approval.

"Well, well, my boy, even though you might not be at the same level as your friends as a trainer, you more than make up with your skill in teaching your Pokemon! I never saw such a freshy-caught Gible be so obedient, which means you know your stuff and..."

"_CHAAAAAR!_"

"_TIIIILE!_"

"_INFERNAAAAPE!_"

The Move Tutor's speech was rudely interrupted by three enraged roars in quick succession that cauased her voice to get stuck in her throat! The alarmed old woman turned to Ash, wanting tosee what was up with that... and much to her dismay, she saw that Ash's three fully-evolved starters were glaring at each other quite dangerously, each one of them seeing the other two as rivals for Ash's attention... and while the young trainer was trying to calm down the rivalry, it was to no avail: Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape were each at one vertex of an imaginary triangle, and were exchanging aggressive glances!

"Hey! For crying out loud, what's going on with those Pokemon?" the old Move Tutor shrieked. Ash gulped as Pikachu, Brock and Gary turned to him in puzzlement as well... then, he chuckled nervously and tried to shrug that off. "Er... turns out, taking all three of my fully-evolved starters was not the best idea I ever had... heheheee... they seem to be... regarding each other as rivals..."

"_CHAR!_" Charizard growled, getting right in Sceptile's face... but the lizard remained stoic and unflappable, calmly twirling his trademark blade of grass in his mouth. Infernape, on the other hand, was showing off his muscles and spraying red-tinted gouts of flame from his fur.

"Well, that's a new one..." Gary sarcastically quipped. The three starters were locked in a stalemate, seemingly about to jump at each other in a terrific free-for-all, and a rather worried Gary instructed his Blastoise to ready his cannons in order to cool down the three had they attempted to do anything rash. Pikachu, on the other hand, started charging his cheeks up, intending to give the three of them a nice shock if they didn't behave...

But he was denied that option when another one of Ash's Pokeballs popped open spontaneously, and another of his Pokemon, apparently having taken lessons from Psyduck or Croagunk, jumped out of it, landing before the trio of quarreling Pokemon! Ash couldn't help but be taken aback as the red bolt solidified into a small quadruped wth a large came made of enclosed leaves!

"_Bayleef!_" the newcomer squeaked in determination.

"Bayleef?" Brock questioned as he rubbed his forehead in amazement. "Don't tell me he wants to..."

"_Bayleef bay, bay bay leef, leef bayleef!_" The Johto Grass started exclaimed in indignation. The other starters didn't seem to take him very seriously, though... and even Pikachu seemed to be thinking that Bayleef must have flipped her lid.

"_Pika? Pika pi, pika pika pi pikachu, pika pikachu pika!_" Pikachu said, his ears raising in surprise before they drooped down in resignation.

"Er... I'm not an authority on Pokemon language, but I don't think I need to be to understand that..." Ash commented. "Well... Bayleef said that... erm... she wants to take the training as well! She said that she wants to show that she's relevant as well..."

The old lady blinked, her steel-grey eyes glazed with surprise. "What? That Bayleef would like to... Hah, that'd be wishful thinking! Only a fully-evolved starter can learn a move such as Frenzy Plant, so... heheheee... sorry about that, my dear Bayleef, but you're out of the picture!"

"_Bayleef bayleef?_" the Grass-type shot back, getting quite angry. "_Bay leef leef bayleef leef!_"

This time, Pikachu's expression could very well be called shocked, as his eyes went completely blank for a moment! "_Pika? Pika pika chu pika pichu!_"

"Hold... hold on a sec here, Pikachu! Are you trying to say that... Bayleef wants to evolve into a Meganium right here and now? And... how is she planning to go about it?" Ash exclaimed. He never thought his strongest Johto Pokemon besides Heracross could get such crazy ideas... those were usually his field of expertise!

"_Pika pika..._" Pikachu confirmed Ash's speculations a second later, and the reactions to that revelation were quite diversified: while Brock was polite enough not to say anything and simply looked amazed, Gary had to look away in order to hide the fact that he was snickering, and Ash's already-evolved Pokemon weren't too kind about it, to put it gently: Charizard and Infernape grunted, as if to say that an unevolved Grass type was unworthy of their time, and sceptile didn't even look at Bayleef, keeping his trademark cold, detached demeanor.

"Heheheee... so close, as yet so far, huh, Bayleef?" the old Move Tutor chuckled. "Come back when you're a Meganium, you might be luckier! As for the rest... well, I can teach the moves you want to your Pokemon, but... for personal reasons, I will only teach one of them! Of course..." she turned to Gary and his Blastoise. "This isn't a problem for you, since you've only got that one Pokemon... but since the other kid has a Sceptile, an Infernape and a Charizard, I guess you'll have trouble deciding on one of them... so, please, take your time!"

"Easier said than done..." Ash answered as he took a good look at his three champions and the small Bayleef who desperately wished she was one of them. Ash had no idea what to do about it... he felt that, whatever his decision is, it would be an injustice to the others, and he was now thinking hard to get out of that difficult situation.

Charizard, the proud, powerful dragon that had accompanied him for so long, and that had recently rejoined him...

Sceptile, his quick, strong and silent Hoenn starter.

And his faithful Infernape, the Pokemon he had given another chance to after he had been abandoned by Paul... and that thanks to him had managed to get his revenge on the arrogant trainer!

Each one of them had his merits, and Ash didn't know how he could favour one rather than the other. If only there was a way to please all three of them... and for a second, Ash turned his glance to Bayleef as well. Her offended demeanor didn't help assuaging his doubts.

"Hmm... you look like you're in a pinch, my boy!" the old Move Tutor screeched, rubbing her wrinkled hands as she approached Ash and his friends, followed by Gary and his Blastoise. "Alright, I'll be the one to to decide for you! I will give your Pokemon go through a few tests, and I'll teach the appropriate move to the Pokemon who will impress me the most! Is that okay to you?"

Ash hesitated, not sure how to answer... and, with an indignated growl, not standing the idea of being ignored in favour of the evolved forms, Bayleef separated from the rest of the group and ran away, back into the forest they had come out of. "_Bay!_" she exclaimed in indignation, alarming Ash and his friends.

"Bayleef!" the young trainer exclaimed as the cute Grass Pokemon walked back into the pine forest. "Darn... wait for me, guys, I'll go fetch Bayleef... and I'm afraid I'll have to have a nice little discussion with him, before all is said and done!"

"Er... alright!" Brock answered with a nod. "Take care not to get lost! We'll stay here and see what the lady's decision is..."

"_Pika!_" Pikachu answered. Ash nodded once more, then followed Bayleef into the pine forest, hoping to catch up with him before it was too late. He couldn't hide the fact that he was very worried... sure, Chikorita had always been his most affectionate Pokemon back when he was travelling in Johto with Misty and Brock... but he had thought this trait of hers had lessened a little over time. Sadly, it seemed she was just as jealous as before. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to bring her along... had he known she would have gotten that offended, he would have kept her in reserve.

"Bayleef! Bayleef, please come back!" he exclaimed, turning in all directions to seewhere his Pokemon was...

"_Pika pikachu!_" Pikachu exclaimed as he and his trainer went deeper and deeper in the forest...

**oooooooooo**

"_Bay! Bay! Leef! LEEF!_" Bayleef screamed, tossing a series of Razor Leaves at a nearby rock, chipping away at it. She was so angry for having been left aside, that she felt the need to vent on some inanimate object. That was the extent of what she could do? She hadn't put any less effort in her fighting than the rest of Ash's Pokemon team! Then why did Ash favour those three rather than her? And why couldn't she evolve into a Meganium? If only she was able to do that, she would have shown everyone what she could do! And even that nasty old lady would have to take back all she had said! If only she could find a way to evolve, then things would be grand...

Why couldn't she do it? Why?

"_Bayleef! BAYLEEF!_" she screeched again, pelting the stone with another Razor Leaf attack before stopping to catch her breath. She had to calm down... and think on her situation. Only by doing that she could find a way to evolve and become as strong as she wanted. How did Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape do the trick? They must surely have gotten through some rather hard training to get that strong... what did they have that she didn't have?

"Bayleef! Hey, Bayleef, you there?"

"_Pika pikachuuuuu!_"

Ash and Pikachu's voices calling her startled the Grass Pokemon, who immediately turned that way. Then, it wasn't true... Ash didn't really consider her a second-rate Pokemon! He was even searching for her now, while she was sure he would have stayed with his strongest Pokemon to watch them train. All of a sudden, Bayleef felt very stupid and petty... how could she doubt him, after all the time they had spent travelling together? Sighing, Bayleef stood up and began walking towards Ash and Pikachu, letting their voices guide her...

**oooooooooo**

"Bayleef! Bayleef, please, come back!" Ash kept on calling, searching left and right with Pikachu's help. He could only hope his Pokemon hadn't already gotten too far away... and luckily, his prayers were answered as Bayleef emerged from a nearby bush and walked towards him, visibly sorry for having caused her trainer to worry that much. The Grass-type was keeping her head low and walking slowly in apology for her earlier temper tantrum... but Ash was not the kind of person to mind such small things, and walked over to Bayleef, joined by Pikachu, to soothe her.

"Bayleef, I'm so glad we found you!" Ash said, crouching down to hug his Johto starter. "For a second, I was afraid you'd really leave... sorry if I made you feel left aside, pal!"

"_Bayleef?_" the Grass Pokemon asked as she rubbed on her trainer like an affectionate kitten.

"_Pika pi pikachu, pika pika chuu!_" Pikachu explained, his eyes looking at the place where Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape were training at the moment, going through the test to determine whether they'd be worthy pupils. Ash nodded in the electric mouse's direction and completed his explanation.

"Yeah, that's about it..." he said. "You see, Bayleef, it's not that I wanted to cast you aside or anything, it's just that... well, just as the Move Tutor said, only a fully-evolved starter can learn those moves. There's not much we can do about it, I'm afraid... but I'm still sorry that I made you felt left aside..."

Bayleef rubbed on Ash again, as if to say there was nothing to feel sorry for. "_Bay, bayleef..._" she murmured, shaking her head gently. The two friends remained there, hugging each other for a while, before Bayleef detached herself and, smiling in determination, announced her intentions. "_Bayleef! Bay bay leef, bayleef leef!_" she exclaimed, nodding at the end while the rolled-up leaves composing her "mane" shook gently, as if moved by a spring breeze. For a second, Ash felt a pleasant smell of flowers in the air around him and Pikachu...

"Well, I can see you're still set on evolving into a Meganium and learn Frenzy Plant, right?" he asked, winking at his Pokemon. "Well, I'm sure you will manage to do that soon, and I'll be waiting for that day! After all, you always were one of my strongest and most reliable Pokemon, right?"

"_Pika pika!_" Pikachu said, confirming his trainer's words.

Now that things had finally been cleared, Bayleef reunited with her trainer and Pikachu and began following them as they made their way back to the clearing where they had met the Move Tutor, hoping that the other three starters weren't at each other's throats for the rights to become the strange old lady's pupils...

**oooooooooo**

Luckily, things were far more subdued than the worst case scenario Ash had just pictured. While there certainly was rivalry betwwen Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape, the three Pokemon were okay with settling the score in a fair competition, by seeing who would have performed better in the Move Tutor's trials. Blastoise, for his part, was already at work, sitting Indian-style near the old well, hands on his knees and eyes clossed as if meditating. The old Move Tutor was watching with a satisfied eye the Pokemon getting ready, while Gary, Brock and Gible were sitting on a nearby tree stump, waiting for Brock's Pokemon's turn to come. Gible, for his part, had decide to kill time by roaming around and snacking on something that looked tasty enough... and for the second time in five minutes, Brock had been forced to stop Gible from biting through an old wooden bucket!

"Hmm... very well, dear boy, your Blastoise seems to have gotten the hang of it..." the old lady told Gary, pacing somewhat sinisterly around the giant tortoise and examining him with cold, appraising eye. All of a sudden, she took her attention away from Blastoise and brought it to the trio of Ash's fully-evolved starters, and her grey eyes shone for a second as she thought up some test to give them. "Well, your turn now, dearies... let's see which one of you can learn your evolution line's exclusive attack! You three... strike the ground with all of your power!"

Charizard and Infernape grunted, apparently wondering if that was all there was to it... and the zealous Fire / Fighting chimp executed the order first, raising one of his powerful arms, and bringing it down with all of his power, his hand clenched into a fist! There was a stunning boom, loud enough to cause Gary, Brock, the Move Tutor and the other Pokemon to cover their ears... while the hapless Blastoise was jolted out of his concentration and jumped up in fright!

"_BLAAAST!_" he roared, glaring at Infernape with aggravation. The flaming monkey grit his teeth and looked down sheepishly, angry at himself for not being able to control his strength as much as he would have wanted. The exam sure hadn't started on the right foot...

Charizard sighed in exasperation, annoyed at having to deal with such a "rookie", and took a deep breath, spreading his wings and concentrating for a short while... then, showing a lot more control than Infernape, punched the ground, opening up a cup-shaped hole in it! With a Cheshire cat grin on his reptilian face, the red dragon looked at Sceptile and Infernape, in order to make sure his rivals could see what he was capable of. Neither seemed to be all that intimidated, in any event: Infernape's eyes turned to a pair of slits, and Sceptile kept his arms crossed, twirling his ever-present blade of grass.

"_Tile..._" the Grass-type lizard sighed. Determined to show Charizard that he meant business as well, he stood on guard, concentrated and slammed his fist down on the ground, shattering a stone that was lying right underneath it and spreading fragments of rock everywhere!

"You have to admit, Ashy-boy's Pokemon are really giving it all they've got..." Gary commented, nodding in approval. "It really means a lot to them to show they're worthy of their trainer, huh?"

"Not that I can blame them, of course..." Brock answered, finally deciding to hold Gible in his arms to stop him from roaming everywhere causing trouble. The small landshark had weakly protested for a while, then had decided to stay put. "And speaking of Ash, here he is! Luckily, he and Pikachu found Bayleef early enough..."

In fact, the young trainer and his Electric-type starter were coming back with Bayleef on tow, and the Grass-type now looked a lot more serene. Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape turned that way, and even the Move Tutor looked at the boy with a barely controlled smirk on her age-ravaged face. "Well, well... if it isn't the whippersnapper! You and your Bayleef seem to have come to an understanding, I see... Well, tell you what, your Pokemon do have potential, but your Infernape seems to be a little too impulsive, if I do say so myself. Oh, sure he's come a long way, but he lacks your Charizard or Sceptile's experience!" she said, her eye never leaving the three Pokemon. Infernape grunted in irritation, but Ash didn't seem to think much of the old lady's assessment of him - he never really cared which of his Pokemon was the strongest or the most capable, anyway.

Still, it wasn't him to question what the old lady was saying. Bayleef nodded to her trainer, who answered with a thumbs-up sign... then, she walked towards Charizard, Sceptile and Infernape to tell them what her intentions were. "_Bayleef, bayleef... bay bayleef!_" she exclaimed, as she tensed the leaves around her neck.

Again, both the Pokemon and the Move Tutor were taken aback by Bayleef's intentions. "Hmmm... so, you haven't given up yet, huh?" the old lady cackled. "My boy, you should have taught your Bayleef not to be so hasty! And you should have trained her more, so that she would be evolved and able to catch up to these three..."

"Well, I don't really care whether Bayleef evolves or not." Ash interrupted her, taking the quirky old lady aback. "All I can say is, that Bayleef wants to prove herself... what about it, miss? I think there's no problem if Bayleef at least tries, right?"

The old lady frowned, and even Gary and Brock asked themselves what was the deal with Ash now... he, too, must have known that Bayleef couldn't possibly learn Frenzy Plant without evolving into a Meganium. Of course, that meant...

A thought flashed through Brock's mind: even in the past, many of Ash's Pokemon had evolved just at the right time to learn some new attack or face a certain opponent... was that going to happen here as well? Was Ash actually counting on that to happen?

Now, Charizard and the others seemed to be less dismissive of Bayleef... and after thinking about it for a second, Sceptile smiled lightly and motioned for his rivals to wait for him. As the perplexed Charizard and Infernape stepped backwards, Sceptile stepped in front of Bayleef and looked at her straight in the eyes. "_Sceptile!_" he exclaimed, slipping into a guarding position. "_Tile sceptile, sceptile!_"

"_Bay!_" Bayleef squeaked back. Her small paws anchored to the ground, the Grass-type crouched slightly, so that she would be ready to dash at the right moment...

"I still say it's foolish..." the Move Tutor repeated. "But in the end, it's your choice. Alright, let's see what that Bayleef can do..."

Just as the old lady had finished talking, the Johto Grass-type starter dashed forward at top speed and launched herself towards Sceptile in a Body Slam attack that the faster and more experienced Hoenn starter had no trouble blocking. Sceptile pushed forward, resisting the powerful impact and at the same time pushing Bayleef back, and the two Pokemon began circling each other, before an improvised audience that was looking on with great interest. The two Pokemon quickly closed on ech other again, starting a spectacular battle and pushing each other around like sumo wrestlers. While Sceptile had a clear advantage, Bayleef was not willing to give up that easily!

"Come on, Bayleef! You can do it!" Ash encouraged her. "Keep up with it!"

"This is preposterous..." the Move Tutor commented. "Why is she giving it all she's got, since she won't be able to learn that move anyway? I think you're just wasting time."

Ash didn't even try to deny that. "Well... maybe that's the case, miss..." he said with a quiet smile. "But, as I said, it's not a matter of my Pokemon being strong or weak, or whether she can or cannot learn that move. One of my Pokemon wants to prove herself to me, and I wouldn't be a good trainer if I didn't listen to my Pokemon! And... who's to say it's useless? Maybe Bayleef has something in store for us!"

"Meh... you're weird, kid... but I respect your choice!" the old lady said as the two Pokemon kept on fighting. Bayleef was beginning to lose ground, and Sceptile was easily pushing her around, causing her paws to literally dig minuscule trenches in the ground. But just as Sceptile seemed about to win, Bayleef reacted in an unexpected way and extended some of the vines around her neck. Sceptile parried with the bladed leaves on his forearms, and managed to repel the opponent's Vine Whip... but Bayleef had reached his objective of distracting his opponent and causing him to waste a few precious seconds. With renewed strength, Bayleef executed another Body Slam, and this time, the blow connected, causing Sceptile to stagger.

"Hmm... I have to admit, she's handling herself better than I thought." the Move Tutor had to admit. "If she wanted to show she had just about as much fight in herself as her companions, she did that in spades! But what does she think she can do now?"

Both Pokemon were facing each other again, waiting for the right moment to resume their fight... and just as Sceptile seemed to be about to go on the offensive again, Bayleef shook her mane-leaves and emitted a sweet, pungent aroma that struvk the taller reptile's nostrils, confusing him for a second. Bayleef smiled as her Sweet Scent attack took effect, and concentrated for a moment, materializing energy bullets made of brilliant green energy all around her body! As Ash and his friends looked on in disbelief, Bayleef threw all the leaf-bullets at her opponent...

"A Magical Leaf attack?" Ash asked himself. "I can't believe it... when did Bayleef learn it?"

Sceptile himself was taken off guard by his opponent's move, but his experience once again saved him as he raised his arms and swayed the attack with Protection, creating a transparent energy screen in front of himself. However, without letting Sceptile putting up a counterattack, Bayleef attempted a new Body Slam attack... which Sceptile countered once again, even when his reflexes had been slowed down by the Sweet Scent attack. Bayleef missed her target and was hit by Sceptile's tail as she dashed beside of him, being sent painfully to the ground. However, she still managed to pick herself up, determined not to lose that easily...

And Sceptile stepped backwards when he saw that something was up with his opponent: her body was beginning to shine, emitting beams of white light like some sort of flashlight, and her eyes were lit up like emerald embers! As everyone stood in admiration, Bayleef raised her head and roared with a powerful, almost baritone voice that was most certainly not her own, while the leaves on her neck opened up and released rainbow-hued pollen in all directions! The Move Tutor had to blink to make sure she wasn't seeing things... she had never seen anything like that!

"Look!" Gary said, his surprise mixed with approval. "Is it just me, or Ashy-boy's Bayleef is evolving?"

"It's not just you, we're all seeing it!" Brock stated.

"_Gible!_" his Gible exclaimed, for once preoccupied with something other than food.

Bayleef's body disappeared into the light... and quickly reappeared, changed into her final evolved form! The Johto Grass starter had evolved into a cute creature resembling a miniature brontosaurus, with a pair of golden antennae on top of her head, sprouting out from between her yellow eyes, and the leaves around her neck had become the petals of a huge pink flower with white and yellow motifs. Her paws had three-fingered feet ending with small claws, while her skin had turned a brilliant green, like the colour of freshly cut grass. There was no doubt about it: that was Chikorita's final form, a Meganium!

"Yeah! Way to go, Bayleef!" Ash cheered, laughing in joy. "You managed to evolve... into a Meganium!"

"_MEGANIUUUUM!_" the new Pokemon exclaimed, her successful evolution filling her with pride. The Move Tutor herslf was speechless for a while... before a satisfied smile appeared on her aged face, and she raised a Japan flag in the air to express her approval!

"Hehehee... nicely done, Bayleef!" the old lady stated. "I didn't think you had what it takes to evolve like that! I have to admit, I'm surprised... but then again, it was clear your Bayleef was well-trained!"

As Meganium raised her head and moved her antennae about, Gary consulted his Pokedex to examine the new Pokemon.

"_Meganium, the Herb Pokemon. His breath can revive wilted plants and flowers, and can calm down aggressive instincts. Whoever approaches him feels stronger, as if walking out of a sunny forest._" the electronic encyclopaedia droned.

Even Charizard and Infernape had to admit they were impressed with the Grass-type's tenacity, to the point where Carizard, after narrowing his eyes at Meganium, grunted in approval as a scarlet flame flickered out of his nostrils. However, Meganium was not about to let it go to her head, as she still had to conclude her fight with Sceptile, and quickly stood on guard in front of the bipedal lizard...

But, much to her surprise, Sceptile crossed his arms on his chest and nodded in his opponent's direction, a wily grin on his elongated face! As Meganium blinked in surprise, Sceptile began explaining the meaning of his action. "_Sceptile! Sceee... ptile! Tile sceptile, scep sceptile... Sceptile tile!_"

_"Mega?_" Meganium asked, as Pikachu proceeded to translate the brief exchange.

"_Pika pika pikachu, pika pichu pikachu!_" the electric mouse explained, still looking at the two Grass-types. Ash was perplexed for a short while, but quickly understood and chuckled good-naturedly.

"Hehehee... silly me, should have thought about that..." the young champion said. "Well, long story short, guys... Sceptile wanted to see whether Bayleef... or, rather, Meganium... had the determination needed to evolve and learn Frenzy Plant. It was... a test of character, I guess you could say, rather than a real fight."

"And I'd say Meganium more than passed! Congratulations!" Brock commented, nodding to the newly-evolved Grass-type. Even the old Move Tutor was very impressed as she walked beside Meganium and caressed her on the side. Meganium stepped backwards, still a little uneasy over her "teacher" and her strange methods, and got close to Ash, rubbing on him as it was her habit already. Only this time, thanks to her increased size, she almost ended up knocking the poor kid over!

"Ugh... man, I really didn't think about this..." Ash murmured as he tried to keep his balance. "I guess... old habits die hard, huh, Meganium?"

"_Meganiuuuum!_" the Grass-type answered, shyly moving her antennae in front of her face.

"Anyway, kid... your Pokemon are truly something! And your faith in them is commendable! So... for this once, I decided that I'll make an exception!" the old lady said as she rubbed her hands together. "For this once, and just for this once, I will teach a move to each and every one of the starters you have here! But before that... you have to assure me of a very important thing..."

Ash blinked in curiosity. "Er... sure, no problem for me... and for my Pokemon as well, I'd say." he answered. "What is it?"

"That's something I noticed earlier, while I was testing your Pokemon..." the Move Tutor said. "Your Infernape, for instance... he's good, no doubt about it, but he seems to be a little too impulsive for his own good... correct me if I'm wrong, but he's only recently learned to control his Blaze ability, right?"

Ash could do nothing but nod in assent. Only shortly before the deciding battle with Paul had the fire chimp been able to master his tricky ability...

"Just as I thought, he's a little inexperienced at that..." the old lady went on. "Well then, listen up! The moves I'm about to teach you, Frenzy Plant and Blast Burn, are incredibly damaging and destructive, and should the user lose control of them, the results would be disastrous. What's more, once a Pokemon has used them once, he or she has to recharge for a while, during which time the enemy can attack as much as he wants. So... all things considered, and seeing that your Infernape and Meganium are still relatively green, make use of them only in life-or-death situations. It's just a tip, but believe me when I say I have good reasons for telling you this."

"I will, miss... thank you very much!" Ash thanked her. "We'll make good use of these techniques... and by the way, how's Blastoise doing?"

"Hehee... you afraid my Blastoise will get the better of you, huh, Ashy-boy?" Gary joked. "Anyway, he seems to be doing well... and I think he'll be able to show that now!"

"_BLAST!_" the tortoise roared, his large eyes snapping open to reveal a pair of azure, shining irises the colour of the clear sea. Blastoise quickly stood up, his body giving off a rapidly-expanding blue aura, with a background noise similar to the sound of crashing tides!

"Oooh, that's amazing!" the old lady said. "Rarely have I seen a Pokemon learn Hydro Cannon so quickly!"

"Well, just because I'm not a League trainer any more, doesn't mean I don't keep my Pokemon in shape!" Gary answered with a small smirk. "And now... Blastoise! Show off your new Hydro Cannon!"

Blastoise threw his head back and roared in defiance... then, with a deafening roar, the cannons on his back opened fire, shooting forth an enormous stream of water, as fast and powerful as a speeding train! The Hydro Cannon blasted its way through a bunch of trees, breaking a couple of them in half like snapping a pair of twigs, and causing a huge pile of dust to rise from the ground, as a part of the forest was literaly blown down! Ash, Pikachu and the others stood watching in awe and fear that incredible sight, understanding why such a technique was so well-guarded...

"Wow..." Ash managed to breathe out after a few seconds of wide-eyed wonder. "This is just... unbelievable! I've never seen such a devastating attack..."

"_Infer... nape..._" Infernape answered with a nod. He was both excited and terrified at the thought that he would be able to do something like that as well...

The Move Tutor, with a more serious expression on her face, crossed her arms and nodded. "Now you've seen why I don't teach these moves to just anyone... and your Pokemon is feeling the aftereffects as well." she said as she looked at Blastoise. After spending so much energy with that one attack, the huge tortoise had crouched down on the ground to catch his breath. Brock, impressed by that showing as well, could do nothing but nod in assent. He was terrified at what might have happened had people like Team Rocket or the new Team Vicious gotten hold of those techniques...

"Well then... since we're clear on that recommendation, we can start our training at last!" the old lady finally said as she turned to Ash. "So, tell me, boy... which of your Pokemon should get the training first? Hmmm... well, why don't we start out with your Charizard? He looks pretty tough, I'd say!"

"_CHARRRRRR!_" the Fire / Flying dragon answered proudly, spreading his wings and shooting up the flame on his tail, while Sceptile and Infernape looked at him with a small hint of envy...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Well, that almost wraps up Ash's training arc. Misty and Dawn, along with their Pokemon, will be the stars in the next chapter, so... get ready for more action and Pokemon battles! See you soon!**


	24. A Mantyke In Need

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**oooooooooo**

**Welcome back! Always good to meet you guys again! **

**After following Ash, Brock and Gary in the previous chapter, and having finally witnessed Bayleef's long-awaited evolution to Meganium, we now get back to Boon Island, where Misty and Dawn have hit an unexpected snag during their training. A Mantyke in distress has reached the island's coastline in search of help, and Misty and Dawn happened to be the first human beings she ran into. Of course, our friends are not going to just ignore a Pokemon needing help, but what will they be getting into by accepting to help Mantyke? This chapter will be dedicated to finding out just that, and to allow the girls a chapter for themselves to shine in! **

**No, I haven't forgotten about the other characters, of course! It's just that, for the moment, I'm mainly focusing on Ash and his team... but the Hoenn's team time to shine will come soon enough, I can assure you of that!**

**With that out of the way, let's begin the new chapter and see what new challenges await Misty and Dawn! Happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 24 - A Mantyke In Need**

"Don't be afraid, Mantyke... Dawn and I are here to lend you a hand!" Misty said soothingly as she approached the manta ray cub. "Now, tell us... what's the matter? How can we help you?"

Mantyke moved one of her wing-like fins to point towards the open sea she had just come from. She seemed to want to tell the two girls to follow her there...

"Wait, Mantyke, you're too tired to go on..." Dawn told her. "You... want us to follow you? Then... well, just guide us, and don't push yourself too hard. It was already very tiring for you to come here..."

"_Mantyke?_" the Water / Flying Pokemon seemed to ask... then, after a brief moment of wonder, she shook her head cheerfully. "_Mantyke, man! Tyke!_" she exclaimed, as she started to guide Misty, Dawn, Starmie, Psyduck and Buneary towards the open sea, never straying too far from the coastline until the moment came to follow Mantyke towards a group of higher reefs. The two girls proceeded, despite having a feeling that things would have soon gotten a lot more complicated, and held their Pokemon tightly as the water got deeper.

"There is sure not one boring day when we're travelling together, huh, Misty?" Dawn commented cheerily. "I thought this would be a simple day of training... and instead, we get to help a Mantyke who's in trouble!"

"You can say that again!" Misty answered with a jovial laugh. "In fact, back when I travelled with Ash and Brock, such things happened pretty much every day! Hehehee..."

Dawn giggled herself as she, her new friend from Kanto and the Pokemon started to swim towards their goal. "I'd love to hear more of that, one of these days!" she affirmed. "But for now, we need to keep up with our new friend... wait, Mantyke! Don't swim that fast! You're still tired, and we can't keep up with you anyway!"

Starmie stopped for a moment and, without saying a word, it motioned for Misty and Dawn to grab one of its robust pseudopods each, so that it could bring them along as it swam. Mantyke took advantage of the break to catch her breath, while the two girls did as Starmie told them. "Phew... thanks, Starmie! Much appreciated!" Misty thanked her trademark Pokemon. "We'd have been in a pinch without you!"

The giant starfish shook its shining body from one side to the other, as if saying that it was no big deal, then started to follow Mantyke once again, with Misty and Dawn both holding onto it with one arm, and carrying respectively Psyduck and Buneary with the other.

"You'd better not get too winded, Buneary!" Dawn told her rabbit-like Pokemon. "We can never be too careful when we're going into the open sea, can we?"

"_Buneary?_" the bunny seemed to ask, only to smile and nod in gratitude a moment later. She considered herself lucky to have such a caring trainer.

"You too, Psyduck..." Misty told the clumsy duck-like Pokemon, with a small sigh. "I know you're not exactly the most graceful swimmer in the world of Pokemon, so... don't push yourself, okay? I wouldn't want you to be on my conscience if you drowned out here..."

"_Psy-ay!_" the duck-like Pokemon quacked in joy as he held tight to Misty, who sighed again as if wondering about what she had to do for that idiot... then, she took a deep breath and mentally prepared herself for what they were about to do to help Mantyke...

**oooooooooo**

Starmie slowed down as it got closer to the rocky coastline, near a reef not too far away from the beach where Mantyke had met with Misty and Dawn. Carefully floating to a point where the sea currents weren't too harsh, the gigantic starfish let the two girls get off, along with Psyduck and Buneary, in the shallow water. Both Misty and Dawn sighed in relief as they set their feet on land and rested a little. Swimming all the way up there to follow Mantyke, even with a Pokemon to hold on to, was not exactly the most relaxing thing they had ever done.

"Phew... we're here, finally! Thanks for getting us here, Starmie!" Misty said as he stroked her favourite Pokemon, who seemed to bow as if in appreciation. Then, theredhead reached to Mantyke, who had lain low and was catching her breath after the long and tiring swim. "Mantyke, you okay? I told you it would have been exhausting to swim all the way up here, right?"

"_Man... tyke!_" the manta ray Pokemon answered after recovering a little, and offered a smile to her new friend.

Both Misty and Dawn nodded, then decided it was time to get a move on. "Fine, then... Mantyke, tell us, what's the problem, and how can we help you?" the blue-haired pre-teen asked after reordering her ponytail. Buneary climbed on her trainer's shoulder and listened carefully to what Mantyke had to say...

"_Tyke!_" the manta ray cub answered in a shrill, yet more serious, voice. "_Mantyke man man, mantyke, tyke man mantyke! Mantyke!_"

"_Buneary?_" the bunny Pokemon asked as if in confirmation, alarmed by what she had heard... then, she turned to her trainer and Misty to relate what she had learned. "_Bun bun, buneary! Buneary bun... Buneary, buneeear!_" she squeaked, using pantomime to better convey what she was saying.

"Hmmm... I think I get the gist of it, more or less..." Dawn said, deep in thought. "In a nutshell, Mantyke is saying that her group of Mantines and Mantykes has been attacked by predators, and now they're locked up in a cave somewhere nearby. They can't get out, or they will be caught and eaten... Mantyke barely managed to get away by a stroke of luck, and came here to ask for someone's help... and I'm afraid we're the only ones who can help her now! The other Mantines won't be able to handle the problem..."

"Yeah, I understand..." Misty answered, thinking that things were already getting more complicated than she had predicted. "And I would like to help her save her comrades as well... but I'm not sure if my team can handle all of them. Sure, my Gyarados could probably face them all... but I have no idea which kind of Pokemon we're dealing with, and how many of them there are. We need to be wary and see what we're up against by ourselves."

"Okay, we'll be able to think up a better strategy that way." Dawn said as she held her Buneary in her arms. "Mantyke, where do we go to find the place your friends are trapped in? Can you tell us?"

The manta ray cub nodded and pointed to another part of the reef, where razor-sharp rocks were jutting out of the waters. After looking at each other and nodding in assent, Misty and Dawn slowly began walking towards the wave-struck rocks, with their Pokemon following them and Mantyke keeping close to the coast and guiding them to their destination. A few metres away from the sharper rocks, Mantyke stopped and pointed to a place where the emerging stones were separated by a small gulf, her wing-like flipper shaking in fear. Then, she got closer to the reef and blended with the bottom of the sea, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible.

"I guess we're getting closer..." Misty affirmed. "If Mantyke refuses to get closer, it probably means those predators she spoke of are close... okay, Dawn, guess we'll be doing this on our own."

"No problem!" the blue-haired girl answered. "Mantyke, we'll go take a look and see what we can do about this. You stay here, and don't do anything rash."

"_Man!_" Mantyke answered, before throwing some sand on its own back in order to hide the smile-like pattern etched upon it. Misty, Dawn and their Pokemon, on the other hand, began walking along the coastline, until they reached the reef, and then reached a narrow path going around the rocks, eventually getting to a large opening in the rocky cliffs in front of them, like some sort of open maw drinking the sea. Right in front of it, several crescent moon-shaped dorsal fins were going back and forth, a dead giveaway at the Pokemon swimming in front of the cave... several Sharpedos, shark-like Water / Dark Pokemon with razor-sharp teeth and a skin to match, who were swimming with alarming agility around the improvised shelter, tracing a few figure-eights in front of it. From time to time, the girls were able to catch a glimpse of an elongated, torpedo-shaped body jutting out of the waves, complete with dark, beady eyes and a terrifying, tooth-filled maw!

"One, two, three... four Sharpedos!" Dawn counted them, keeping her voice low as if she feared the shark-like Pokemon would hear her from under the tides. "And that's obviously the cave where Mantyke's companions are... Well, that's four of them. Not too many, but we're kindashort of Pokemon ourselves! What can we do, Misty? Think your Gyarados might be enough against them... ever considering their Rough Skin ability?"

Misty blinked in puzzlement. "Their what?" she asked.

"Er, sorry... right, I should have explained." Dawn excused herself. "Sharpedos are quite frail, but they possess this unique ability, Rough Skin... in other words, whenever they're attacked directly, their abrasive skin does damage in return. That's why I'm not sure Gyarados could hold his own against four of them..."

Misty nodded. "Yeah, I see your point... that means we'll have to think of a way to fight them without our Pokemon getting too close..." she said out loud as she tried to think of an alternate plan. "Hmm... let's see, what could we do to drive away those big oafs?"

As Misty thought out loud, she was jolted out of her reverie by a sudden plunge, and she saw one of the Sharpedos jumping out of the water, holding a still-struggling fish in his crushing jaws before swallowing it like candy! The shark-like Pokemon licked his lips, as if appreciating the appetizer while he waited for the Mantyke and Mantine based main course, and the redhead shuddered in fear, dreading that such a fate could soon befall Mantyke's companions as well! Not long after, her eyes crossed with Psyduck's, and the strange psychic duck looked vacantly at her... almost as if he was asking what Misty was planning to do now.

"Hmm... hold on a sec..." Misty said, her eyes still affixed onto Psyduck's. The clumsy duckling seemed to have given her an idea, but Misty wasn't sure whether it would work. "Maybe, if we were to... sure! Of course! It just has to work!"

"What? What is it that has to work, Misty?" Dawn asked in surprise as her friend from Kanto snapped her fingers.

"_Psyduck?_" Psyduck asked.

"Alright, listen up... it's an idea I got right now, and I'm not sure whether it will work or not... but if it does work, we'll get to distract the Sharpedos enough for the Mantines and Mantykes to escape!" Misty said. "But we'll need everyone's help to do so..."

"_Buneary!_" Dawn's Buneary exclaimed, her long ears wagging from side to side. Starmie jumped out of the water, spinning on itself like a wheel, and Psyduck nodded his head, though he didn't seem to be too sure of what was really going on...

"Alright, then!" Misty continued, motioning for her friends to get closer. "Now, listen up, here's what we're gonna do..." 

**oooooooooo**

A couple minutes later...

"Alright... you ready, Buneary? The Sharpedos still don't seem to pay any attention to us... so we can catch them off guard!" Dawn said to her bunny Pokemon. Among the waves, the shark Pokemon were getting closer and closer to the cave where the Mantine and Mantyke group had taken shelter, just waiting for the moment when one of them would have put a fin out to grab it with their teeth... they had to act quickly if they wanted to save Mantyke's friends!

"_Bun!_" Buneary squeaked, standing on top of a rock near the shaking sea. Without the need for Dawnto give any sort of order, the graceful bunny Pokemon took a deep breath and opened her mouth, where a whitish-azure sphere of light began glowing for a short while... then, she breathed out a powerful Ice Beam that struck the water right in the middle of the Sharpedos, immediately freezing it! The Sharpedos scattered in surprise and panic as a smalliceberg began forming in the midst of their group, breaking their formation... and allowing Misty and her Pokemon to make their move while the Water / Dark Pokemon were still confused!

"Now, Gyarados!" the redhead exclaimed, opening her Pokeball and letting the huge sea serpent out. "Get underwater and use a Body Slam attack... on that block of ice!"

Gyarados roared in assent and got underwater with incredible swiftness for such a huge creature. The shark-like Pokemon quickly turned in his direction, and two of them tried to get underwater and intercept him... but Gyarados was faster than they were, and resurfaced just in time, hitting the ice block Buneary had created with all of his immense strength! The iceberg shattered with a deafening shattering sound, turning into a hail of razor-sharp pieces of ice that rose up in the air and then plummeted down, causing the Sharpedos to frantically scatter in order to avoid the falling blades of ice!

"Now! Starmie, Psyduck... use Psychic and Confusion on those ice shards!" Misty exclaimed. Both Pokemon concentrated and usedtheir mind powers to lift the shards of ice straight from the water, in order to rain them upon the ferocoius shark Pokemon, hitting them multiple times! Roaring in surprise and anger, the Sharpedos tried to get away... but one of them, a particularly grizzled and aggressive specimen who looked like the leader of the small gang, got close to Misty's Gyarados and struvk back with a vicious Crunch attack, his serrated jaws clamping shut on the sea serpent's scaly hide! Gyarados roared in pain and thrashed about to shake the monstrous shaek Pokemon off, sending his attacker airborne for a brief moment, and finally dropping him into the stormy waters with a mighty plunge!

"Gyarados!" Misty exclaimed, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw that her Pokemon was stillable to fight. But things would go south really fast if they didn't get rid of that Sharpedo as quickly as possible...

The Sharpedo leader opened his mouth and let out a piercing Screech sound, which penetrated Gyarados' ears and caused him to roar in rage and pain, not tomention to drop his guard... and that was when the mighty shark used an Agility attack and sped towards Gyarados at blinding speed, his head surrounded in a glowing aura that Dawn recognized all too well...

"It can use Zen Headbutt?" the blue-haired pre-teen exclaimed. "This thing is harder to beat then we thought!"

Gyarados tried to get out of the way, but the earlier hits had weakened him, and the Sharpedo leader was able to slam into the sea serpent's body with all of his immense strength, not only doing damage directly, but also scratching Gyarados with his abrasive skin. Again, the monstrous serpent wobbled dangerously as the Sharpedo boss speedily got away from him... then, it turned around, its dorsal fin slicing the waves as he did so, and got ready for another attack! Misty knew she could not afford to let Gyarados get hit again, but the opponent was too fast for her Gyarados to aim correctly. If only she had a way of detaining that thing...

"Buneary, use Ice Beam once again!" Dawn's voice called out. The bunny-like Pokemon obeyed and, after taking careful aim, shot a powerful Ice Beam that struck the water right in front of the speeding Sharpedo, who was too fast to do anything to avoid the massive block of ice that formed right in front of him! The shark Pokemon only had time to widen his eyes before slamming face first into the miniature iceberg, breaking it apart but remaining stunned and losing a lot of speed in the process! Misty and Gyarados quickly turned to Dawn and her Buneary in surprise... but the blue-haired girl pointed to the still-reeling Sharpedo, advising Misty to take advantage of his distraction now!

"Quick, Misty! Gyarados! Take him down!" Dawn exclaimed. "I don't know how long he'll be dazed..."

Misty quickly steeled herself. "Right! Gyarados, let's wrap this up with Dragon Rage!"

Gyarados' maw opened wide, and a multicolored flame danced between his jaws for a split second before shooting towards the still-stunned Sharpedo, who could do nothing but grit his teeth as he was struck head-on and overwhelmed by the Dragon Rage! A huge, deafening blast shook the water all around the place, causing the waves to rise higher for a second, while the Sharpedo leader was catapulted out of the water and thrown back for a long distance, before plunging back into the sea, exhausted and stunned. He quickly floated to the surface once again, his eyes spinning and his mouth semi-opened in a goofy expression... but he regained his bearing and shook his head while recalling his companions.

"_Sharp! Shaaaarp!_" he roared, and the other shark Pokemon, having seen that battle from the very beginning and not interested in being mauled by Gyarados and his companions, wisely decided to follow their leader's advice and make a run for it.

"_Sharpedo!_" they all exclaimed together, before plunging underwater and making a swim for it, escaping to the open sea in search of easier prey. The battle had ended almost as quivkly as it had begun, and as Dawn ran to Misty, the two girls exchanged an high-five, congratulating each other over the victory!

"Bravo, Misty! Your Gyarados was splendid!" Dawn exclaimed, giving the huge serpent a congratulating smile as he reached his trainer. Misty caressed her largest Pokemon on the side, which Gyarados seemed to appreciate.

"Well done, Gyarados... Starmie... Psyduck... and well done to you and your Buneary as well, Dawn!" Misty complimented her friend from Sinnoh, just as Buneary jumped into the young coordinator's awaiting arms. "It was a team effort, let's face it! If it wasn't for Psyduck and Starmie distracting those Sharpedo with their psychic powers, and your Buneary running interference, we'd be in hot water, don't you think so?"

Gyarados softly growled in assent, and Starmie did a spin on itself as some comical sparks lighted up all around its body! "I guess you're right!" Dawn answered with a smile, before turning to the reefs among which Mantyke had hidden herself. "Hey, Mantyke! You can come out now, those sHarpedos are gone... and they won't be coming back anytime soon!"

"_Tyke?_" the manta ray cub said as she emerged from her hiding place just half a minute later, looking at the two girls in admiration. "_Tyke, tyke! Mantyke!_"

Her enthusiasm rising, Mantyke began springing out of the water, frantically moving her wings as a sign of thanks towards Misty, Dawn and their Pokemon! After celebrating for a little while, the small manta ray waved her wing at the girls and swam at top speed towards the cave her friends were in... and only a few minutes later, a small group of Mantykes, joined by three Mantines, happily swam out of the cave, warmly thanking their companion and her friends for having saved them!

"_MANTYKE! MANTYKE!_"

"_MANTIIIIINE!_"

The manta ray Pokemon began swarming around Gyrados, Starmie, Psyduck, Buneary and their trainers, and the redhead almost felt embarassed by their rescuees' enthusiasm! "Hehehee... hey, chill out, everybody, it's okay! Be calm! We... we just did what anyone with a heart would have done in such a situation!"

"There were Pokemon in trouble... and we helped them! That's all there is to it!" Dawn continued.

Gyarados grunted in assent, moving his head up and down... but that did not stop the overly-happy Mantykes, who grabbed the hapless Psyduck in their fins as he walked into the water to speak with the manta ray Pokemon... and promptly began throwing him up in the air!

"_Psy-ay-ay! Psy-ay-ay!_"

"Hey, hold on a sec!" Misty exclaimed. "Don't go shaking Psyduck more than he needs! You don't wanna worsen his headache!"

Misty tried, rather unsuccessfully, to "save" her clumsy psychic duck from the Mantykes' excessive attention, while Dawn, her Buneary and Misty's Gyarados watched with a bewildered expression and huge sweatdrops coming down their heads... and Starmie's gem flickered on and off, as if saying that it didn't know what to do...

**oooooooooo**

As the sun began setting, bathing Boon Island's skies in orange and red hues, Ash and his male companions were walking back downtown after Ash and Gary's successful training session. Sadly, even Boon Island's Move Tutor knew nothing of Brock's Gible's new attack, as she seemed to never have seen it before...

"So, Brock... even the Move Tutor couldn't help you with that, huh?" Ash asked, as his group entered the small seaside town and walked towards the harbor, where the appontment with Misty and Dawn was.

"Sadly, she couldn't... she said she had never seen a Gible use that move... and any other Pokemon, for that matter! It must be a really rare move for people to know so little about it..." the dark-skinned boy replied, a little dubious. "Well, no matter... I'll look for someone else who knows. On the other hand, I'm glad your Pokemon were able to get stronger..."

"Although, after what that Move Tutor showed us, we'll have to take extra care to only use them when necessary..." Ash answered as he stratched Pikachu behind his ears. "By the way, what time is our appointment with the girls?"

"Right about now..." Gary answered, takking a look at his wristwatch, which showed the time to be about half past seven in the evening. "And, if my eyes aren't deceiving me, they're right there in front of the Pokemarket!"

"Ash, Pikachu, Gary, Brock!" Misty greeted, waving to the boys. Dawn and her, back in their everyday clothing, were walking to their companions, and they too seemed to be quite satisfied with how the day had been. "Bang on time! So, how was your little excursion?"

"Hey, girls!" Ash answered just as Misty and Dawn rejoined the group. "Well, it was better than I thought, actually! Not only Bayleef managed to evolve to a Meganium... but the Move Tutor was so impressed with my Pokemon that she agreed to teach all four of my starters her secret moves! Now, my only started that still hasn't gotten a signature move is Torterra... but I'll make sure he gets to learn it as well!"

"The only thing that kinda disappoints me is the fact that I couldn't get to know more about Gible... I ended up just taking him allong for a snack! What about you, on the other hand? How was your special training session?" Brock asked as the team began walking towards the beach.

Dawn put an hand in front of her mouth and giggled gently. "Hehehee... well, we ended up doing less training than we expected to, but we did get to live an exciting adventure!" she told him. "You see, Misty and I had gone to the beach for our training, and..."

Dawn began narrating the adventure she and Misty had lived through as the team walked towards the Boon Island harbor, speaking of the Mantyke they had befriended, and of the Sharpedos they had chased away in order to save Mantyke's brethren... and at the end of the tale, all three boys were quite awed and impressed.

"Hm, it was quite the unusual adventure!" Gary said. "And I have to say, you really did a good job handling those Sharpedos!"

Misty winked in the boys' direction... especially Ash. "Well, modesty aside, there's a reason why I'm such an expert on Water-type Pokemon! And that Mantyke needed our help, we couldn't just let him go! I just hope he and his group are safe now..."

"_Pika?_" Pikachu squeaked, looking down to the shallow water on their side, just a second before something splashed out of the water, startling him!

"_Mantyke!_" an affirmtive chirping sound came from the water, just below the deck Ash and his friends were walking on, and everyone turned that way in surprise just to see the smiling face of the Mantyke Misty and Dawn had befriended and helped earlier on! The small manta ray was half-submerged, and was playfully waving her wing-fins in front of herself, almost like she was calling for the group of humans, in order to tell them something important.

"Mantyke! Why are you here?" Misty asked, getting to the edge of the deck. "I hope nothing else happened to your friends..."

The manta ray cub shook her head no, and when Misty and her friends were about to ask her what the problem was then, Mantyke raised her tail out of the water and pointed it to a far away point near the horizon... where the group of manta ray Pokemon Misty and Dawn had helped earlier was happily gliding out of the water, flying on the edge of the waves with their powerful wing-fins for a few seconds before diving again. They seemed to have put up a goodbye committee for the young female trainers, and Mantyke wanted to go greet them in person!

"Wow, that's amazing!" Ash exclaimed. "I've never seen that many Mantines and Mantykes all together. Just look at how they jump!"

"Well, that's a behaviour researchers still haven't fully explained." Gary commented as he watched the manta ray Pokemon's spectacular performance. "Sometimes, these Pokemon seem to simply jump out of the water for fun. Though it does give them better propulsion when they swim."

"_Mantyke!_" Mantyke chirped, as if to confirm the theory Prof. Oak's nephew had just come up with. "_Man... mantyke man, mantyke tyke mantyke!_"

"_Pikachu..._" the electric mouse said as he rubbed his chin in thought. He turned to Misty and pointed to Mantyke with one of his tiny paws. "_Pikachu pi, pika pika pikachu, pika pi chu pikachu!_"

"That Mantyke... would like to be in Misty's team?" Ash asked.

"Are you sure, Mantyke? Your... friends have given you permission?" the redhead asked. In fact, she had to admit she would have liked to have a Mantyke in her team, but she wanted to make sure that even Mantyke and her friends were okay with that. However, the problem seemed not to present itself, as Mantyke nodded perkily and repeated her name twice, inviting the red-haired girl to throw her Pokeball. "Alright, then! If that's what you want as well... I just happen to have a free space in my team! Pokeball, go!"

The red and white ball soared for a brief distance and touched Mantyke's back, absorbing the manta ray cub inside of itself and landing on the deck, right beside Misty. It shook for a few seconds, then stabilized and emitted the satisfying cliching sound that signalled a successful catch, and Misty picked up the Pokeball containing the newcomer in her team, and raised it up in the air in triumph! "Yay! I've got a Mantyke in my team now! Fantastic!" she yelled, before turning to the group of Mantines and Mantykes swimming in the distance. "Goodbye, you guys! Take care of yourselves... and don't worry, your friend is in good hands! I'll make sure she grows strong!"

"_MAAAAN!_" the kite-like Pokemon all waved goodbye with their fins, and the group of young trainers waved back at them and watched as the group swam away, until all that could be seen of them were a few splashes on an otherwise perfectly smooth ocean.

Ash sighed and gave a smile. Well, it hadn't gone exactly as he thought, but it had still been a good day. On the next sunrise, they would have boarded the boat to Kin Island, the third island of the Sevii archipelago... and they would have taken quite a few fond memories of Boon Island with them!

"Well, guess we can call it a day." Brock commented. "It was a fruitful day, in any event... and right now, we'd better get our Pokemon some rest, and then go grab something to eat."

"You're right, my stomach is kinda protesting..." Ash said as he rubbed his belly. "And... well, tomorrow we'll be on our way to the next stop, Kin Island! I'm psyched up for this!"

"_Pikachu!_" the electric mouse answered, as he stared at the setting sun...

**oooooooooo**

"That will be all, my lord..."

In Team Vicious' secret HQ, Cezar ended his report without losing his affable, almost cheerful facade... despite the fact that he was facing his boss, a creepy-looking man wearing a stuffy black uniform, with golden boots and a red padded jacket, short spikes jutting out of the chest and shoulders. His face was half-hidden by an helmet, a tuft of spiky black hair jutting out of its top, and his eyes were covered with red-tinted lenses that only made the man look more threatening. A rather unkempt goatee hanged from his chin, and an elegant purple cape was skillfully worn around his shoulders.

There was no mistaking him - that was the Iron-Masked Marauder, a former Team Rocket executive whom Ash, Misty and Brock had thwarted as he tried to capture Celebi, about three years before!

"I see... then Paul, the runner-up of this year's Sinnoh Tournament, has refused to join us. More's the pity... someone like him would have been very useful to us, but in any event, we have no need for a Growlithe that won't be tamed." he answered, just as J came in from a side entrance. "Oh, and what a coincidence... the famed Hunter J is back from her mission, though she doesn't look too enthusiastic about it. What's the trouble?"

"I would have caught Moltres and gotten away with it, if it wasn't for those meddling kids... and there was an Hoenn Elite Four among them..." J explained. As a professional, she hated to report of a failed mission. "And we had to leave some of our men there, as picking them up would expose us to undue risk. Still, we did manage to take the... consolation prize, so to speak. Even though we had to teleport away using the emergency measures... our vehicle was too damaged, thanks to that girl's Rotom..."

The Marauder shrugged, uninterested in details. "Still, our minimum objective was achieved, which is more than I can say for that fool Jakov... he was beaten by the Sinnoh Grand Festval runner-up before he could even get close to Regice, and he hadn't even used the Pokemon we had given him. No matter, we have other things to think of. How are our troops in Hoenn? Have they found their target already?"

"Yes, my lord." the other Team Vicious commander answered. "Three targets, in fact... two of them have just won their first Badge, and the other one... well, I'll leave that to your imagination! Hehehee..."

The masked villain chuckled. "Huhuhuu... very well, I'll send word to ou Hoenn troops to keep an eye out on them. And I'd better warn our own Elites, just in case. As for the rest... J, you did use the emergency teleport, didn't you?"

"I did, my lord..." the Pokemon poacher said. "Which means I have a need for substitutes now..."

Again, the Marauder didn't seem to think much of that. "Already provided for. Of course, the damage to your engines won't be repaired so quickly."

**oooooooooo**

"Man, what a drag..." a Team Vicious female grunt whined as she carried a dome-like cage, with a sleeping Abra trapped within, in her arms. She and one of her companions were in charge of the repairs to J's flying battleship, and were now entering a large control room, filled with machineries and strange contraptions. "Whenever Miss J uses that emergency teleport, we always end up having to substitute the batteries!"

"It's not like we can do much about it..." her companion, a male grunt carrying an imprisoned Ralts, answered. "You know how the backlash ends up exhausting the batteries. We need to change them whenever that happpens..."

The woman sighed in resignation and walked to a capsule on the chamber's wall, opening it to reveal the lifeless body of an Abra, hooked up to the machineries with strange-looking cables! With dispassionate indifference, the Team Vicious grunts began opening the other capsules, revealing other lifeless Abras and Ralts, and removing them from their place...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Well, that was quite an example of mood whiplash! After all the fun and games at Boon Island, we get a dark scene at Team Vicious' HQ... and just to be sure, next chapter will be when things really begin to go south! What will happen? I can onl say four words for now...**

**See you next time! **


	25. Kidnapped

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Welcome back, everyone! As usual, I hope I'm not too late for our usual appointment with Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures! I've tried to update as soon as possible, taking as much time as I could from my everyday schedule in order to make my personal timetable work... and I hope you're satisfied with the results!**

**Anyway, enough about me, and let's get to the interesting part, right? Our team of bold heroes has just been to Boon Island, the second of the Sevii Islands... and while Ash and Gary managed to have their Pokemon learn some new and interesting moves, and Brock tried unsuccessfully to get to know more about his Gible's special move, Misty and Dawn were interrupted in the middle of a training session by a small Mantyke in search for help for her brethren, trapped in a cave by a bunch of hungry Sharpedos. Thanks to their teamwork, the girls managed to save the trapped Pokemon, and better yet, Mantyke asked to join Misty's team, and was accepted! After Brock's new Rhyhorn and James' Slugma, another one of our heroes gets an upgrade for her team!**

**This chapter will mostly follow two side characters who will later have a very important part in my story... namely, Ursula and May. We know that Ursula is trying to go to Kanto in order to train her Pokemon for the next championship, and May is accompanying her brother in the beginning part of his journey... but let's not forget that there are people who might be interested in them, and not in a good way!**

**What do I mean by that? Well, you'll find out soon enough, in this brand new chapter!**

**For now, I have to thank all those who left a review to my previous chapter, and especially to Codename Bolt, who pointed out a few flaws in my writing. I have to admit, some of my plot points admittedly could have been elaborated on a little more. I know that the Pokemon anime is known for pulling things out of a metaphorical hat from time to time (the "Thunder Armor" fiasco, or Tobias, just to name a couple), but this doesn't really excuse me. I'll try to be more careful and avoid that later on.**

**That's about it for now! Again, let us immerse ourselves in the magical world of dreams and adventures that the world of Pokemon is! See you soon!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 25 - Kidnapped**

"Well... after all the trouble I went through to get a ticket for this ship, it is only fair that I get to enjoy the commodities of a luxury cruise, after all!" Ursula commented haughtily to herself as she leaned on the railing of the main bridge, closing her eyes and enjoying the fresh, soothing breeze of the open sea. The large luxury ship that was taking her to Kanto, the S.S. Catherine, was pretty much a small floating city, complete with all the facilities one would expect of such a classy ship: a restaurant, a theater, an arcade, a cinema, a casino (which was off limits for the underage Ursula, but that certainly did not stop her from sneaking in and watching the adults play...), spas and gyms... and, of course, an area that trainers and coordinators could use to have their Pokemon get some practice. In fact, Ursula had noticed, there were quite a few people onboard the S.S. Catherine that dealt with Pokemon, and were now on their way from Sinnoh to Kanto for some reason. She never imagined to find so many... but she didn't really care about it. What mattered to her was, that finally she would get her chance to do some serious training once she arrived in Kanto... and her next battle with Dawn would turn out very differently!

"Just you wait, Dee-Dee... my Pokemon and I will surprise you with our skill!" she murmured to herself, her smile tinted with some resentment towards her rival. While she had to recognize that Dawn did have skill, that didn't make the rich Coordinator any less eager to get back at her! "Meh, let's not think about it now, and let's see if I can take a stroll to the practice area. I wouldn't want my Pokemon to get rusty, after all... well, it's about four o'clock in the afternoon. Plenty of time. I'll see if the practice area still has a few free places... so get ready, guys, we're getting another training session!"

That said, Ursula detached from the railing and gave a wink to the Pokeballs she held on her belt, not really minding the people around her as she made her way back to the inside of the ship. In fact, none of them had given her any particular reason for her to be interested in... especially not a guy in an Hawaiian flower-decorated shirt and loose pants that was standing on the bridge near the peach-haired girl, seemingly staring at the horizon. In reality, though, his keen eyes were following Ursula as she walked back inside... and with a sinister half-grin, the man walked in the opposite direction, made his way to an isolated place in the back of the ship... and activated a small, almost invisible comm. device on his ear, speaking though it in a rather disquieting way...

"HQ, this is Agent 013. The situation is under control. I am currently onboard the S.S. Catherine, and we're nearing Kanto. I can confirm the presence of several trainers and coordinators, our primary target among which, among the ship's passengers. We await for further orders."

"_Excellent._" a scrambled voice, belonging to a man in his thirties, spoke back to him. "_The time to spring our plan in action will be soon, so be ready for everything. Are our agents standind ready and in position?_"

"Affirmative, Leader Archer." the agent said. "We will strike and take over this ship as soon as you give us the signal."

"_Very well... I am pleased to see such efficiency coming from my subordinates!_" the man called Archer answered. "_In that case, I have nothing more to add. Get ready to take over the ship as soon as the signal comes. I look forward to good news._"

"Of course, sir. All for the glory of the new Team Rocket!" the agent finished, waiting for static to fill his ears before interrupting the call. With a slight smirk, he detached from the railing and got ready for the task that lay in front of him. If everything went well, that would surely be a glorious day for Team Rocket...

**oooooooooo**

As Ursula entered the training room, she was greeted with the sight of several Pokemon trainers and coordinators of all ages that seemed to have had the same idea she had just had, and were currently trying to teach their Pokemon a few new tricks, having mock battles, or any of the sort of things one would normally expect of a Pokemon trainer. Ursula looked around, and smiled when she saw an arena that was currently free - there couldn't be a better place to have her Pokemon go through a practice session, and she even had a few tricks to try out...

"Okay, then... suppose letting my Flareon and Vaporeon get some of the spotlight wouldn't be a bad idea!" she mused to herself, as she took a pair of Pokeballs out of her belt and opened them, causing the two Eevee evolutions to pop out and land on the arena in front of her. "Alright, you two, we need to get some training, unless we want to lose our edge! And I really hope we can work out some new tricks for our next competition! Do you feel up to it?"

"_EON! EON!_" the Fire-type and Water-type evolutions exclaimed in unison, causing the spiral-haired coordinator to smirk proudly.

"Just what I always expected from you two! Let's begin!" Ursula stated. "I have a feeling that combining your powers to form something unique will earn us a lot of points with the audience, in our next... Huh? Hey, you two, what's going on?"

Flareon and Vaporeon, who had seemed quite eager to start training just a few seconds before, had suddenly stopped, sniffing the air around them as if they had caught some weird smell. And Ursula saw that they weren't the only ones: several Pokemon with a notoriously keen sense of smell, especially canine and snake-like Pokemon, had stopped whatever they were doing and were busy examining the air with their noses, sporting some rather worried expressions. The elegant coordinator girl frowned noticeably, as she began to get worried herself...

"What's the meaning of this...?" she murmured to herself, as she looked around, an hand in front of her mouth. "Flareon, Vaporeon... do you smell something strange?"

"_Eon..._" Flareon whimpered, before her eyes started glazing over, and the Fire-typed Eevee evolution began swaying from side to side as if she was drunk. Vaporeon followed suit, and soon after, much to Ursula's dismay, all the other Pokemon and trainers were feeling the same symptoms!

"What... what's going on here...?" Ursula thought out loud. Her movement were getting sluggish already, and she was having trouble standing... "Ugh... is this some kinda... joke? This... can't... ugh..."

Her head spinning, Ursula was forced to drop to her knees as her Pokemon collapsed and fell asleep under the effect of some kind of chemical... and the drill-haired preteen could not stay awake much longer before she dropped to the ground as well, trainers and Pokemon alike falling asleep all around her.

"Can't... stay... awake..." she muttered, after a last attempt to drag herself out of the room. "Can't... what..."

Then, she succumbed to sleep...

**oooooooooo**

Smirking in satisfaction from the main deck of the ship, in front of the bound and gagged captain and vice-captain, several Team Rocket grunts smiled in satisfaction as screens all around them featured the ship's crew and passengers falling victim to the sleep-inducing chemical they had introduced in the ship's air conditioning system. Pretty much all the ship was under their control now... all that was left to do was subdue any remaining straggler that had remained outside and get the ship to its final destination...

"Well, seems the S.S. Catherine is now a property of Team Rocket!" a grunt said with a nod. "It was a great idea to target this ship... that's an hefty number of trainers that are now in the hands of Team Rocket!"

"Yeah, and Mr. Archer is definitely going to be happy with our catch!" another grunt stated. "And now, let's not waste anymore time... change the ship's route to the Team Rocket HQ in Floe Island, and gather all the crew and passengers in the cargo hold. This will be a glorious day in Team Rocket's history!"

"Right away!" the others grunts answered readily, some of them getting at the ship's controls while the remaining ones exited the control room to meet with the other agents and gather the prisoners...

**oooooooooo**

On a country road in the continent of Hoenn, on the other hand, a rather more subdued fight was going on at the moment...

"_Pooch, pooch!_"

"_Wingull!_"

A couple of battle cries, coming from the Pokemon that were facing each other, signalled the start of an intense fight, as Max's Poochyena began tangling with a particularly skilled and combative Wingull, belonging to a young boy a few years older than the glasses-wearing trainer, dressed in a rather informal way with a red shirt, blue shorts and a turned-backwards baseball cap. The small hyena had just managed to hit Wingull with a Bite attack, but the seagull Pokemon was not going to go down that easily, and it quickly went back on the offensive.

"Alright, Wingull... attack that Poochyena with Supersound!" the trainer said. The Water / Flying Pokemon screeched in assent, then opened his beak, pointed at Poochyena and let out a small burst of sonic waves that the hyena cub could only dodge at the last second. Max sighed in relief, knowing all too well that confusion would have been very dangerous for his Pokemon... then, he gave his next command while his opponent was busy getting back on guard.

"Great job, Poochyena! Now, follow up with Howl and increase your attack power!" he ordered. Poochyena squatted low on the ground, threw his head back and howled fiercely, his soft fur standing up on his small body. Wingull had just managed to stand on guard again, and his trainer was already cooking up a way to attack in safety...

"Don't worry about that, Wingull... he can't beat us if he can't hit us! Use a Double Team attack!" the unknown trainer said, deciding it was time to rely on a defensive srategy. The seagull rapidly beat his wings, and soon he split into two after-images of himself in front of Max, May and Poochyena's eyes. Of course, only one of those was the real Wingull... the problem was, understanding which was which!

Or at least, that seemed to be the problem: Max, in fact, was hardly worried about that and, smiling in satisfaction, he pushed his glasses up on his nose, a determined light shining upon the lenses.

"I'm afraid you underestimated my Poochyena, my friend... now, Poochyena, use Odor Sleuth!" the younger boy exclaimed. The hyena cub raised his ears and started sniffing the air, catching the scent of the actual Wingull... then, he turned to the seagull Pokemon and growled in preparation for a new attack!

"Water Gun!" Wingull's trainer anticipated the attack, and the seagull Pokemon opened his beak once again and shot a powerful stream of water, hitting Poochyena straight in the face! The grey hyena roared in surprise and went backwards a few steps, threatening to lose his balance, and Wingull lowered his altitude... which Max took as the right moment to attack!

"Now! Tackle him, Poochyena!"

The Dark -type had no hesitation and leapt to attack, hitting his opponent with a powerful slam, and Wingull screeched again before crashing on the dusty earth, his wings flapping noisily as he did so. A few seconds later, Wingul was laying on the ground, stunned, while Poochyena was standing, battered but proud of his victory, his tail raised high!

"Wingull is unable to continue fighting!" May said, as designated referee for that battle. "The first match goes to Max and Poochyena!"

"Yay! Nice job, Poochyena!" Max complimented his Pokemon, who turned to his trainer and grinned in victory, one of his small fangs shining through his maw.

"_Pooch!_" Poochyena howled. He looked like he was saying that it was only natural that he had won...

However, the battle was still not over. The opponent recalled his exhausted Wingull and took out another Pokeball. "Well... never mind that, Wingull, you still did a good job! Okay, let's see how you handle this, kid... come out, Gulpin!"

A strange Pokemon appeared before Poochyena, looking like nothing more than a moving bag with eyes, a mouth, and two ridiculous-looking arms on the sides of the body: it was rotund and a green color all over, with a black rhomboid pattern on its back and a yellow feather on its neckless head. His face was nothing more than a pair of puckered lips and a couple of ever-shut eyes, and it was using its absurdly short arms to proper itself on the ground at a greater speed than one might have thought possible.

The two siblings made an alarmed face when they recognized a Gulpin, a strange Poison-type Pokemon known for being able to eat pretty much everything. During their journey with Ash and Brock, Max and May had been in a town that had been infested by those strange Pokemon... a problem that had been solved when Ash's Treecko had beaten a gigantic Gulpin that was threatening everyone. Therefore, both siblings had first-hand knowledge of how dangerous and stubborn those Pokemon could be...

"Hmmm..." Max reflected a little, and decided it was a good idea to let Poochyena rest. "Alright, Poochyena, you can come back! You already did a great job... thank you very much!"

"_Pooch! Yena!_" the grey cub protested a little, still wanting to show off to his trainer, but he resigned to his trainer's decision and went back in his Pokeball. Then, much to Max and May's surprise, one of the young boy's Pokeballs snapped open, and Zigzagoon, Max's raccoon-like Pokemon, popped out and stood in front of Gulpin. Apparently, he had been waiting for his rival to lose or be recalled so that he could get in the field and prove himself.

"_Zigzag!_" he exclaimed, fur standing on end like an angered cat. Gulpin did not change his blank expression, and he seemed to be asking himself if he was supposed to be impressed with Zigzagoon's appearence.

"Er... hold on a sec, Zigzagoon, I couldn't even... oh, well, doesn't matter!" Max said, thinking that it didn't really matter, and that Zigzagoon was more than able to hold off Gulpin. "Alright then... start off with a Tail Whip!"

"Gulpin, strike back with Pound!" the opponent ordered. Zigzagoon charged recklessly towards the Poison-type and, before it could strike, spun on himself and swung his ruffled tail in its face, obscuring its visual. Gulpin slithered backwards and stretched its arms as if they were made of rubber, punching Zigzagoon in the side. The raccoon Pokemon whimpered in pain and jumped back, but quickly shrugged off the hit.

"And now... Growl!" Max ordered, in an attempt to further weaken his opponent before the battle started in earnest. May nodded, approving of her younger brother's careful approach, but she secretly hoped he was not going to prolong the battle too much. He seemed to be over that tendency of his, but one could never know...

Zigzagoon obeyed and showed his teeth to the opponent, causing it to hesitate for a second... or at least, for the amount of time it took for its trainer to decide on a possible counter.

"Well, four-eyes, if that's the way you want it, I guess I'll have to take off the kiddie gloves." Max's opponent replied. "Playtime's over, Gulpin! Use your Sludge attack!"

The Poison Pokemon opened its mouth, revealing some kind of bottomless hole that brought to its ever-hungry stomach and pretty much covered the Pokemon's entire face... then, with disconcerting quickness, it shot a large glob of toxic mud that splattered upon Zigzagoon, making him whimper in pain, and leaving him in the middle of a dense, smelly puddle. However, the raccoon Pokemon quickly recovered and began dashing around Gulpin, in an attempt to blindside it and land a worthwhile attack. In spite of its clumsy appearence, however, Gulpin was able to follow his opponent's movement without too much trouble, trailing him with its perpetually-closed eyes, while Max was trying to think of a way to let his Zigzagoon attack without him taking another of those poisonous attacks.

"Do it again, Gulpin! Do not let him escape!" the older trainer went on. Gulpin repeated its latest attack, showering the terrain around Zigzagoon with pellets of toxic mud that the raccoon Pokemon was forced to frantically dodge, in the end finding himself surrounded by puddles of slippery poisonous sludge, keeping him from dashing around. He looked around himself for a way to escape, but it seemed impossible to get close to Gulpin without stepping on the mud. The only chance for Max seemed to be, to either withdraw his Pokemon, or to go for broke and try to jump over the toxic puddles, which was obviously a risky proposition.

"Hmm, guess you're in a bit of a bind, aren't you?" the opponent affirmed, not resisting the chance to gloat a little. "Now your Zigzagoon is going nowhere without risking poisoning... which doesn't apply to my Gulpin! What are you going to do about it?"

"Sorry to say that, bro... but he's right about that." May commented, hoping Max was similarly aware of how much he was being cornered. Still, Max was keeping his cool, though it was hard to tell if he had an actual plan, or if he was just holding it together.

"Once again, Gulpin... attack with Sludge!" the opponent ordered, convinced that it was going to be the deciding blow. The all-devouring Pokemon seemed to gulp down saliva for a couple times, then it opened its mouth as much as it could and shot another blot of toxic mud, which Zigzagoon seemed to have no other choice but to take head-on.

However, Max managed to catch a glimpse of a chance at the last moment, by simply observing the arc that the Sludge attack was tracing in the air...

"Alright, let's do this..." the glasses-wearing boy murmured to himself. "Zigzagoon! Leap over the mud puddles and hit Gulpin with Headbutt! Now!"

Both opponents seemed to frown in indecision, while Zigzagoon dashed forward and jumped towards Gulpin, narrowly avoiding the Sludge attack bearing down on him! May smiled as she watched Zigzagoon leap over the poisonous mud Gulpin had smudged all over the ground, and then bear down on the Poison Pokemon, hitting it with a powerful headbutt! Max had managed to catch the exact moment where Gulpin was off-guard, and had his Pokemon leap to attack, hoping he could get past the sludge...

Max's strategy proved itself to be the winning one: Zigzagoon, seemingly gliding above the toxic material, descended upon Gulpin and struck it with a powerful headbutt in the forehead! The Poison-type's eyes turned into a comical cross that pretty much occupied the whole upper half of its face, and Gulpin was thrown away several feet, clumsily landing in the dust and rolling at its trainer's feet, while Zigzagoon somersaulted through the air and landed on all fours on the solid ground. Gulpin's trained remained flabbergasted for a while... but then, accepting of his defeat, recalled Gulpin in its Pokeball.

"Well... I guess there's not much point in denying it, is there?" the older boy said as he placed the Pokeball back in his belt. "Still, Gulpin, you did a great job, and you deserve to rest now! As for you, my friend... congratulations! I can see that your Pokemon are well-trained. They managed to defeat two of my best fighters, and it has been a great experience to fight with you! I hope you'll allow me a rematch, one day."

"Thanks, you were pretty good yourself!" Max answered, happy that his opponent was a good sport. "And I and my Pokemon had our fun in this battle... right, Zigzagoon?"

"_Zigzag!_" Zigzagoon answered, keeping his tail raised high in a show of pride. For his part, the raccoon Pokemon was glad to have given proof of himself to his trainer.

"Yeah, we did good... but not good enough!" the older boy answered as he straightened his baseball cap. "Anyway... well, I wish you good luck for the rest of your journey, and I'll be waiting for the day we'll meet again!"

"Of course! I'll be glad to give you a rematch whenever you want..." Max started to say, before remembering that they had neglected a rather important thing... "By the way, I didn't even ask for your name..."

"What? Oh, dear, you're right... me and my manners..." the older boy exclaimed, playfully bopping himself upside the head to chastitize himself. "Anyway, my name is Stefan... and what's your name? I seem to recall that your sister called you Max..."

"Exactly! My name's Max, and my sister's name is May!" Max answered, introducing his older sister as well. May approached and waved with her hand. "We're travelling together for now... I want to become a great trainer..."

"And I'm travelling to better my technique as a Pokemon coordinator!" May said with a wink. "Anyway, I was very pleased to meet you as well, Stefan, and I hope we get to meet again soon! Good luck!"

"Likewise! See you soon!" Stefan answered, before placing his backpack on his shoulders and step into the woods May and Max had just come out of. The two siblings waved him goodbye until he was out of sight, then Max bent down to scratch his Zigzagoon behind an ear, congratulating him over his victory.

"Thanks for your effort, Zigzagoon! I think you've earned your rest!" the glasses-wearing boy said, as he recalled his Normal-type in the Pokeball and turned to his older sister. "Well, what do you say, sis? Guess we can be on our way now, huh?"

"Of course... but I would advise you to be careful of how Zigzagoon and Poochyena behave. They seem to be always trying to one-up each other." the coordinator said. "Not that there is anything wrong with being competitive, but it'd be better to make sure they don't end up causing trouble with their way of doing things."

Max nodded, though he wasn't really giving the matter too much weight. "Alright, sis... but I don't think there will be problems about that!" he answered. "At least, they've always behaved up until now..."

**oooooooooo**

Stefan cast a worried glance behind him, as if he wanted to make sure nobody had followed him, as he stepped out of the road and into the thivk vegetation, taking out a small comm. device from a pocket in his shorts. He walked some more and, after making sure he was completely alone, he composed a number on the small device's keypad and stood waiting. Which he didn't have to do for long.

"Hello? Am I talking to HQ? This is Stefan... and I'm here to report." Stefan began, sounding somewhat insecure, as if he was afraid of talking with the person on the other side of the line.

A young-sounding voice, belonging to a boy in his mid-teens but already laced with a rather chilling tone of cruelty, answered his call. "_Oh, there you are, you good for nothing! So, how did it go? Did you see for yourself how that little brat is? And what do you think of that?_"

Stefan gulped, in order to moist his throat before answering. "I... I think I can safely say that Max is an interesting subject!" he answered. "We already knew his sister would make for a great pawn for our organization, and she'd become one of our most powerful weapon, given a little convincing... but Max really surprised me. It was no fluke if he defeated Roxanne at his first try."

"_Nicely done. Team Vicious won't accept mediocre trainers for their army... for once, Stefan, you actually did a good job!_" the other speaker said. "_If that is the case, we'll immediately start getting ready to capture Max and May. They'll make fine additions to our organization. As for you, return to base and stand by for new orders._"

"Of course, Demitri... brother..." Stefan murmured. "I will be back... as soon as I can."

A clicking sound signalled the end of the conversation, and Stefan switch his comm. device off and put it back in his pocket, sighing to herself. Such a pity it had to be like this... May and Max were good people, and they deserved better than wat Team Vicious had in store for them. Still, there was nothing he could really do, with the exception of feeling bad for them. Whatever Team Vicious wanted, Team Vicious got. And he couldn't really disobey an order coming from his superior officer... and his older brother of all things.

"More's the pity..." Stefan murmured to himself. "Max, May... If only we had met under different circumstances, we would have become great friends... Sadly, my brother's will has precedence over my personal feelings on the matter. I can only hope my regret is a small measure of comfort to you..."

**oooooooooo**

Snowpoint City's port was once again active and vital, after Zoey and her friends had managed to chase Team Vicious away from Mt. Coronet, and the worst of the damage from the avalanche had been repaired. While that incident had left the city deeply damaged and shaken, Snowpoint City would soon be back on its feet... and now that it all seemed to be over, Candice and Maylene had managed to convince Zoey that there was no need for her to stay there, and that she could get back to her travelling and training. At the moment, the red-haired coordinator was about to board the ship to Canalave City, and her Gym Leader friends had come to greet her for one last time and wish her a good journey.

"Well... so, it seems that things are more or less under control for now. I'm sorry their boss escaped us, but at least they won't be able to do any more damage around here... I hope so, at least." Zoey said, giving a glance to the massive shape of Mt. Coronet in the distace. "I need to thank you again, my friends... without your help, I don't think I would have come out of that place alive."

"I am the one who should be thanking you, Zoey." Candice told her younger friend. "I was feeling completely lost, after what happeed to my city, and the fact that you supported me in this moment, well... it sure helped a lot. I don't know if I would have been able to hold it together, if not for you two."

"No prob, it was really no biggie for us to help you!" Maylene answered with a wink. "We solved the problem, sent the bad guys running, and I even got a chance to train a little! In the end, it was no problem for any of us."

"I see..." Candice stated. "Anyway, Maylene, I'd like to remind you not to be too hasty, and not to suppose everything is over just like that. I know how these criminal organizations are, and they won't give up until they get what they want, or they're completely disbanded. Furthermore, if what that Jakov guy said is true, then this... Team Vicious... is a lot stronger and more widespread than we thought. And if they're targetting Legendary Pokemon, well..."

Maylene rubbed her chin, having to admit, much to her displeasure, that Candice had a good point. "Well... I guess you're right, Candice, as Gym Leaders, we'll have to look into it. We know nothing of this... er... Team Vicious, and having at least half an idea of how they are organized would help." she admitted. "Still, we managed to chase them away, that has to count for something."

"Alright... as for me, I will try to look into this business on my own. I will try to contact you should I find something worthwhile." Zoey went on. "As for you... please try not to overdo it, and be careful. These guys play for keeps, from what we've seen."

"We know, Zoey... but thanks for the heads-up all the same!" Candice answered. She then turned her glance to the ship, whose passengers were almost all on board. "By the way, Zoey... I think you should get on the boat, else you're missing today's only cruise."

"You're right..." the redhead stated. After adjusting her backpack, Zoey cleared her voice and looked around for a moment, as if she wanted to burn the sight of Snowpoint City in her mind before departing. "Then, Candice... Maylene... hope to see you soon! I'm gonna miss you!"

"Thanks, Zoey! Same to you, and thanks again for helping us out!" the black-haired Gym Leader answered, looking at Zoey with her eyes sparkling in gratitude. Zoey waved at her friends one last time before checking her baggage and getting on board... and ten minutes later, the ship set sail and began its journey towards Canalave Town. Candice and Maylene stood on the pier, waving at Zoey who was waving back from the ship, remaining there until the snow-clad town was no longer visible. Then, the redhead sighed and went back inside, while still looking pensively at the sky.

"Well, all's well that ends well, I guess... but I'm afraid it won't last long, Candice was right about this." she told herself. "I must do my part, if I want the truth about this Team Vicious to come out. For now, I'll start my journey to Hoenn, and I'll see if I can get some more info on the way."

**oooooooooo**

"So, Proton? What's the situation?" a female voice asked, and the man the question had been asked to - a man dressed in the black uniform of an high-ranked Team Rocket executive - raised his head from the reports he was going through. A few metres from him stood a beautiful, tall and elegant woman in her late thirties, with long red hair, wearing a white Team Rocket uniform with a long skirt, a silken black belt, and the trademark letter R emblazoned on the shirt, on her left side. Her eyes were a similar crimson color, and were looking at her companion with fierce acumen, as if she was trying to read the answer right from Proton's mind. Somehow, her golden earrings didn't make her any less unsettling, despite her beauty. On the contrary, they made her look more aristocratic and detached.

The man named Proton looked up, revealing aquamarine-green hair neatly combed on both sides of his head, half-hidden by a black cap. "All as planned, Ariana. We have kept Team Vicious' moves under scrutiny, and we've seen that they're trying to forcefully recruit highly skilled trainers. In a way, you could say they've had our same idea. Sometimes, they just kidnap them, sometimes they persuade them by offering them strong Pokemon to use... but still, they seem to be having quite a bit of success, as their number swelled up quite a bit recently."

"I see." Ariana answered. "And what of the Team Vicious leaders' identities? Have we discovered anything?"

Proton gave a good look at another sheet, reading it attentively before answering. "Hmm... we do seem to know something more. The avalanche that recently struck Snowpoint City in the Sinnoh region, causing several vctims and large property damage, has been caused by the intervention of one of Team Vicious' executives, a man who goes by the name of Jakov. Though we are still unclear on the means they used, or if the avalanche was even intentional. Furthermore, the organization's leader has hired the infamous Pokemon Hunter J to do a few jobs for him. But that was something we already knew. Leader Giovanni has recently sent Domino, our top spy and infiltrate, to investigate them, so I'm sure we'll have more information soon."

A computer screen beside Proton beeped twice, and the Team Rocket executives turned to it and stood on attention by reflex as Giovanni's hard face appeared upon it on a comm. window. The leader of Team Rocket still sported his trademark hard grin, but this time, there seemed to be something more to it... Ariana felt as if their boss was somehow more enthusiastic and energetic.

"Oh... Greetings, sir! We... were not expecting you to contact us so soon!" Ariana said politely. "Please, tell us... what can we do for you?"

"_At ease, Executives Proton and Ariana_." Giovanni stated with an indifferent wave of his free hand, while the other petted his Persian. "_There have been some interesting developments, from what I came to learn. Domino has discovered something very important about Team Vicious... informations that should prompt us to do something about it, as quickly as possible._"

Proton and Ariana looked at each other for a moment. "Well... we're listening, sir. What seems to be the problem? Has the identity of Team Vicious' leader been discovered?" the green-haired young man asked.

Giovanni nodded. "_Domino has picked up some very useful informations that allowed us to deduce his identity. The man in question is a former subordinate of mine that now goes under the alias of Iron Masked Marauder, and has previously tried to usurp my position and take over the world using the power of a Legendary Pokemon. It seems that now he's attracted a group of people enticed by the rewards he promised, and has seriously begun researching as many Legendary Pokemon as possible, in order to capture them. He is serious obstacle to our plan, so his removal has absolute priority._"

"Do not trouble yourself about that, sir. Now that we know, we'll make it a point to keep a close eye on him, and we'll take him out as soon as we get a chance to." Ariana said unhesitatingly. "Team Rocket's glorious future will not be denied by a two-bit thug."

"_Glad to know that._" Giovanni stated. "_Still, you'd do well to be on your guard. Underestimating the Iron Masked Marauder could be a vital mistake. I am not exactly sure how he does it, but it seems that his Pokemon, and those belonging to his subordinates, are gifted with unusual power and stamina. One can never be too careful with them._"

"Of course, sir. Thank you for the heads-up." Proton said calmly. "As for the rest, we're glad to say that the... recruiting operations are proceeding smoothly. Our trainer might not be, on average, at the same level of the ones Team Vicious is recruiting, but they more than make up for that in numbers. Soon enough, we will be able to overwhelm Team Vicious and their leader, and estabilish ourselves as the most powerful syndacate in this world."

"_Excellent!_" Giovanni stated, a cruel shine in his dark eyes. "_While our rivals and us had the same idea, it seems that our methods will prove superior. Keep up the good work. I'll be looking forward to good news._"

Ariana and Proton saluted, as the Team Rocket leader slowly disappeared from the screen...

**oooooooooo**

Meanwhile, in another room in Team Rocket's Sevii HQ...

Several people had been left standing in a large, empty room looking more like an hangar than anything else: at least three dozens of them, all passengers from the recently catured S.S. Catherine, who had only a few hours before been brought to the secret base and secured, along with their Pokemon. Now with no Pokeballs to rely on, their hands tied behind their backs, and under the scrutinizing gaze of several Team Rocket grunts ready to intervene, they were waiting anxiously for someone to come and say anything to take them away from their state of fearful uncertainty. Several whispered phrases expressed concern over Team Rocket's motives for bringing them all the way there, and more than one of the prisoners was concerned about his or her own safety.

Time seemed to have slowed to a crawl, and several hostages were beginning to feel restless... until finally, the double doors at the opposite side of the huge room opened up with a sinister creaking sound, letting in a couple of individuals wearing the trademark Team Rocket uniforms. One of them was rather tall and skinny, with bright purple hair combed in a huge fringe in front of him, and a matching goatee that gave him a rather unkempt air, along with his large, droopy eyes and his somewhat floppy ears. It was rather hard to believe that a guy who looked so much like a slacker was really an high-ranking member of one of the world's most feared criminal syndacates.

The other looked quite a bit more formidable, though: a tall, elegant fellow in a spotlessly clean white suit with matching shoes, and the symbol of Team Rocket emblazoned on his chest, he had neat green-azure hair, and a sharp expression that went from hostage to hostage as he scrutinized all the gathered prisoners, as if trying to evaluate them. He was holding a Pokeball in one hand, implicity threatening anyone who might have gotten ideas of playing hero, and all the hostages had no choice but to keep silent, fearful of annoying their jailers...

"Hmm... looking good." the sharply-dressed man finally commented, his hand stroking his shaven chin. "We seem to have quite a few volunteers, from what I can see. In that case, my esteemed guests, allow me to make the necessary introductions. My name is Archer, and I am the director of the Sevii Islands branch of Team Rocket. You are now in our underground HQ in Floe Island, where the ship that was taking you to Kanto is now moored. We apologize for the disturbance we might cause you, but I am sure you will appreciate the offer we'll be extending you right now. You have been brought here, of all the numerous trainers onboard the S.S. Catherine, because you were the best of them all. The others did not have much value beside their worth as bargaining chips, and were therefore transferred to our base in the distant Quest Island. You, on the other hand, will have the honor of working for Team Rocket, and employing your Pokemon for our benefit and that of our leader Giovanni."

"Not a chance!"

A young girl's voice broke the silence, and several hostages turned their surprised glances in that direction as a spunky preteen, wearing an elegant white-on-light-blue dress, and pinkish hair done in a pair of spiralling pigtails at both sides of her head, got away from the rest of the hostages and, in a furious but ill-thought-out attempt to show Team Rocket who they were dealing with, rushed towards Archer and his henchman, trying to take them by surprise. However, she couldn't even tread three steps before the Team Rocket grunts were upon her... and no matter how much Ursula thrashed and kicked, she was quickly subdued and forced on her knees. "Ugh... unhand me, you brute! Don't you dare touch me... ugh! Just wait and see what happens when my parents hear about this! You won't get away with it! You'll soon have both Sinnoh and Kanto's police hot on your heels!"

"My, my... we seem to have a spunky one, here!" the purple-haired man commented with a smug smile, stroking his goatee. As Archer smirked in agreement, his underling approached Ursula, who was still being held facedown on the ground, and knelt to look at her straight in the eyes, receiving an hostile glare in return. "Yes, you've got some fire in you, kiddo! Several bigger and stronger trainers are quaking in fear now, and you aren't. You'd make a terrific Team Rocket agent, I'll tell you!"

"You can forget about that..." Ursula hissed through grit teeth. "And be thankful that I'm far too polite to tell you where I'd like you to go!"

"Yeah, yeah... they always put up the tough girl act, at first..." the bearded guy commented sarcastically. "It just needs time, and they'll get scared like everyone else. Now, to more pressing matters... my name is Petrel, and I'm the right-hand-man to the man you see here with me, Mr. Archer. I will personally see that you... enjoy your stay in our HQ and make sure you become good grunts for Team Rocket. It is admittedly a rather critical moment for us, so we need you to give it all you've got, okay? And, sorry, but we're not exactly taking no for an answer. Now, with your permission, our men will escort you to your rooms. I hope you will enjoy them, for wat they're worth."

Two grunts forced Ursula to stand up, as the other escorted the prisoners to their cells, under Petrel and Archer's satisfied eyes. "Well, three dozen new trainers... plus all the hostages in our Quest Island base. And as luck would have it, one of our prisoners was a quarter finalist at the Sinnoh Grand Festival... things are turning out great for us, aren't they, Mr. Archer?" the purple-haired man asked his boss.

"It is surely a good sign, but we cannot take any risks." Archer answered. "As of now, we're simply trying to counter Team Vicious' technical superiority with numbers - after all, quantity is a quality on its own, and war is a matter of numbers as well. But we need some more advanced fighting techniques if we are to stay one step ahead of our opponents. Speaking of which, Petrel... are you ready for the next step of our plan? I have a feeling we'll have to hasten things along."

"No problem about that, Mr. Archer." Petrel answered with a goofy smile. "Everything is ready, and should some busybody trainer come and try to throw a wrench in our works, we'll deal with him. Our Pokemon teams are in top form as usual! And about the gems, we trust we'll be able to recover them shortly!"

Archer smirked. "That is good. I trust your Koffings will do a good job as well. By the way, Petrel, there is another thing you should take care of. We know for sure that those two idiots and their talking Meowth are still trailing the winner of the Sinnoh conference and his friends. While those three are completely incompetent, they might have their uses as well. Make sure you take care of that, Petrel."

"Of course, sir! You can count on me!" Petrel said, standing on attention.

**oooooooooo**

The Team Rocket grunts who were dragging Ursula with them accompanied the young coordinator through a large corridor lined with several small cells that looked like they had been taken straight out of a prison, and as soon as they found an empty one, the criminals walked up to it, opened it and uncerimoniously tossed Ursula inside of it, causing her to slam on the ground with a pained yelp. Griting her teeth because of a skinned knee, Ursula quickly stood up as the ropes that binded her wrists came undone, and she ran towards the door, but her jailers did not allow her any chance, and slammed the door shut before she could even tread one step, before locking the girl in.

"You scoundrels!" Ursula yelled, grabbing the bars in a rather unelegant way and kicking them furiously. "What are your plans, huh? What do you need me for? Surely you don't think you will get away with this, do you? And where have you brought my Pokemon? Tell me, now, or you'll regret it!"

The Rocket grunts dismissed her threats, especially since she had no way to make good on them. One of them just glared harshly at the rich heiress, and pointed a key at her. "Play your cards well, little girl... and perhaps one day, you will be able to tell this to your children." he said, in no uncertain terms, before turning away from Ursula and going to help his colleague put the prisoners in their cells. Ursula yelled at him one more time, but in the end, seeing that she was just wasting her efforts, she gave up with an angry sigh.

"Darn..." Ursula muttered, hoping that nothing bad had happened to her Pokemon. The cell she was in was a very desolate place, as it could probably be expected. Just a bed, a table and a chair, with a door on the opposing wall, probably going to a toilet. Ursula tried sitting on the bed and found that it was uncomfortably hard, just as she expected. "Tch... not accounting for taste here, huh? Am I in hot water or what? Me and my stupid idea of going to Kanto... what on Earth is going on here? It seems like the world is being turned upside down."

Of course, Ursula had no way of knowing howclose to the truth that statement was...

**oooooooooo**

Meanwhile, back in Hoenn...

Max and May had stopped for lunch break, and were now sitting on a blanket that had been spread on the ground, looking at their Pokemon who were themselves enjoying their meals, under the watchful eye of May's Blaziken. The gigantic fire bird had recently returned to May's team, and while there weren't many chances for a fight, he still wanted to be as useful as he could. For the moment, there was an obvious benefit in that Poochyena and Zigzagoon weren't quarreling...

"Thanks for the help, Blaziken!" May thanked her starter, who replied with a gracious nod. The bandanna-wearing girl took a deep breath and began preparing setting the lunch on the blanket. "Alright... now, let's get something in our stomachs as well! Since, as someone here says, I fail at cooking, I thought it would be a good idea too buy a few packed lunches at the last Pokemon Market we went to. So... please, little bro, help yourself! But leave a cheese sandwich for me, as I put my eyes upon it before you did!"

May saw that her younger brother was trying to snatch one of her favorite kind of sandwiches, and she was quick to stop him, starting a funny game of tug-of-war before their Pokemon, some of which even took their attention away from their meal in order to enjoy the show. Glaceon, the latest addition in May's team, seemed to even have a certain air of superiority as he watched the quarreling siblings...

May and Max seemed to have reached an agreement on who would eat which sandwich, when a fine golden mist suddenly fell upon them and their Pokemon, and the two siblings immediately dropped the lunch to look around themselves in alarm. There was something all too familiar about that sight...

"Huh? What's this?" Max asked out loud, as he tried to see where the strange golden dust came from. However, his movement had already gotten awkward and sluggish, as if that strange dust was sapping his strength. "ANd... why am I feeling so faint? S... Sis, don't you feel like... th lights are going... out..."

"Wh... What?" May exclaimed, beginning to feel tired herself. It was just then that the truth hit them - they were right in the middle of a massive Sleep Powder attack! "M-Max... this is a... Our Pokemon... what are they...?"

As quickly as they could in their stunned state, the siblings turned to their Pokemon... and, much to their horror, they saw that most of them were already asleep, and those that weren't were on the verge of succumbing to the sleeping powder. All of Max's Pokemon were already in slumberland, whereas May's were managing to put up more of a struggle, thanks to their greater power and experience. However, it didn't seem to avail them much: Skitty and Munchlax were already sleeping, while Beautifly, Venusaur and Glaceon were slowly laying down and closing their eyes, and Blaziken was holding to a nearby tree, trying to stay awake with all of his might. However, it all proved futile a little later, and Max himself fell asleep a moment later, with May still trying her best to hold on to consciousness.

"Ugh... what's... this... Max..." May managed to murmur, before she too gave up and closed her eyes...

**oooooooooo**

The first thing May felt when she started to wake up, after an unspecified amount of time, was a cold breeze blowing in her face, like some sort of icy winter wind... and a strange scraping sensation on her wrists, causing her to wince at every move she tried to make. All she knew was, she was sitting on an hard surface, clearly a chair...

Every thought was brutally interrupted by a slap in her face that forced her to wake up all of a sudden! With a pained yelp, May opened her eyes, almost losing her balance on the chair, and tried to nurse her hurting cheek... only to discover that her wrists were tied behind her back with robust ropes, and she was sitting on an hard wood chair in the middle of a darkened room, inside of a damp, cold underground shelter of sorts...

"So, sleeping beauty? I don't have all day to wait for you, you know!" a young yet harsh voice, belonging to a teenaged boy that May saw almost literally appear in front of her eyes as she woke up: blond spiky hair combed in a flame-like hairstyle, with cold blue eyes that almost seemed to hypnotize her, he was wearing a black uniform with rounded shoulder pads, decorated with a mirrored R on the chest, in addition to a pair of silver knee-high boots and fingeress black gloves... and, most unsettling of all, he was holding a small whiplash in his right hand, which he was sinisterly playing with. Coupled with the smug, self-assured smile dancing on his freckled face, it gave May a great reason to fear... until she saw that there was someone else in the room, a younger man who wore a uniform similar to the blond's, but seemed rather more familiar...

"Ugh... who... who are you? What do you want from me? And... what is this place? What about my Pokemon?" May frantically asked.

"You haven't been brought here to slack off, miss!" the blond shouted as he sent the other boy away with an uncaring wave of his hand. The younger boy nodded and gave May a sorrowful stare... and that was when May almost jumped in surprise as she recognized Stefan, the trainer Max had defeated in their earlier encounter! "Especially since you've been brought before me, Demitri, one of the top executives of Team Vicious, the group that will soon become the lead organization in the world! You're being offered a great honor, my dear... from now on, you'll work for us, helping us in our way to world conquest! With the skill you've got, our group will surely become a lot more powerful. And don't worry about your Pokemon, they're under our custody, but we'll hand them back to you soon enough! Of course, provided you work for us."

"W-what?" an incredulous and frightened May answered. "You can forget about it! I will not aid people like you! Let me go, now!"

Demitri smirked sadistically. He knew May would not go along with his proposal... "Heh, I see you've quite unsupportive of us. I saw that coming, therefore... I decided to take some guarantees, just in case..." he calmly stated, before snapping his fingers. Another door at the far end of the room slid upon, with a dull sound of working machinery, and May was horrified to see her brother Max appearing from behind it, bound to a chair just like she was, and gagged for good measure!

"Max!" May exclaimed, her eyes wide. Max futilely thrashed about in an attempt to loosen the knots holding him, and tried to call for his sister with inarticulate sounds. "You... you... lowlife! What did you do to my brother?"

"Nothing yet... but I'd enjoy the opportunity!" Demitri smirked, his whip tracing some disturbing patterns in the air. As the glasses-wearing boy desperately tried to wriggle away from the Team Vicious executive, Demitri approached him and held his whip in a noose-like fashion, placing it dangerously close to Max's throat. "Listen to reason, girl... should you accept to work with us, I can vouch from your little brother's safety, though the reason why you should care about this runt is beyond me. Of course, should you refuse..."

Demitri pushed the improvised noose towards Max's throat, and the young boy gave a muffled moan as he tried to get away from it... but he was so scared that simply seeing the weapon seemed to have completely disheartened him. "So, little May, what about it? Will you accept, or have your little brother suffer for your stubborness? Ten years is an awfully short time to live, isn't it?" he asked with manic pleasure.

As Max tried to somehow get away, looking at his sister as if she could actualy do something, May grit her teeth and froze in terror... and without further reasoning, with Max's safety being the only thing that mattered in her mind, she took her decision.

"Wait! Hold on! Don't harm Max!" May tearfully exclaimed. Never losing that atrocious grin of his, Demitri turned to her, and she hanged her head low as she announced her decision. "I... I... You win! I... will do whatever you want! I accept your deal, just... don't do anything to my little brother, please!"

"Ooooh, now that's more like it!" Demitri chuckled evilly, turning his back to the still scared bespectacled boy, and walking to May, who was still keeping her head low. He reached down to her and tilted her chin upwards so as to force her to look at him straight in the eyes. Despite her surrender, May maintained a fierce, determined glare that was calling out her jailer for his cruelty... but instead of feeling threatened, Demitri seemed intrigued by her assertiveness.

"A wise decision, May. You won't regret it. I already have some... special missions just for you!" he said arrogantly...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Oh man... this is getting tough!**

**Ursula and May have been captured by Team Rocket and Team Vicious respectively, and it seems they will be forced to fight for the respective sides. This could be a huge problem, and will definitely cause a fair bit of mayhem in the future! For now, Zoey leaves the spotlight, but she will return later on, in a manner that many probably won't see coming... and the same goes for Kenny as well, since the poor guy has gotten kinda neglected in this story, at least as of now. Don't worry, though... he will get his time to shine as well!**

**Next chapter will see Ash and his friends arriving in Kin Island, the third of the Sevii Islands... what will happen there? And... can May find a way to save both herself and Max from whatever Team Vicious has in store? These answers (possibly) and more in the next chapters! See you soon! **


	26. Welcome To Kin Island

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**I'm back! Missed me?**

**...**

**...**

**Ugh, okay... I can already hear the chirping crickets... anyway, no matter, I'll just restart the narration from where I ended it last time! And last time, we saw that several quite shocking things happened to some friends (and not-so-friends) of ur bold heroes: both Ursula and May have been captured by the resident criminal teams, Team Rocket and Team Vicious respectively... and while Ursula still seems to have some fight left in her, May is being blackmailed into fighting for Team Vicious, with poor Max being used as a bargaining chip. Things aren't looking so good for them...**

**And our heroes, who still know nothing about all of this, are about to disembark in the third of the Sevii Islands, Kin Island... where new adventures will be waiting for them! Those of you who have played Fire Red and Leaf Green probably already know what to expect, but others might be pleasantly (or not) surprised... **

**Okay, then... let's not waste any more time, and let's plunge headfirst into our new chapter! The long wait is over... now, enjoy the ride!**

**And, of course, if you'd be so kind as to leave me a review...**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 26 - Welcome to Kin Island**

"Well, that's it... this is Kin Island!" a satisfied Gary Oak stated, leaning slightly from the bridge of the ship that was taking him and his friends to their next destination. It was already possible to see that Kin Island was not, in fact, a single island... but rather, two islands that were joined together by a huge bridge of strengthened wooden planks. The smaller of the two islands was covered in a luxurious ilex forest, looking very deep and ancient, and created a very sharp contrast with the modernized larger island, where a relatively large city was visible on the coast, very close to the beach. Strangely enough, the port was not adjacent to the city itself, but was standing a couple kilometers away from it, and a convoluted paved road went from it to the mainland.

"Yeah... it's probably the most populated island in the archipelago. Or at least, one of the most populated." Brock commented as he flipped through a guidebook he had taken out of his backpack. "Still, it appears that this is alsoa pretty quiet place, where few things out of the ordinary ever happen. The two main attractions, by the way, are the Bond Bridge, that huge wooden bridge that's joining the two islands together... and the mysterious Berry Forest, where Berries of all types are said to spontaneously grow. Many people used to journey there, but now, for reasons unknown, the influx of tourists has greatly diminished."

"I'd like to know why..." Ash said to himself. "And of course, I'd also love to go take a look there! Who knows what we'd end up finding, out there..."

Misty smiled sardonically as she glanced sideways at Ash. "For some reason, I knew you'd say that, Ash Ketchum!" she commented. "When it comes to getting in trouble, you're a world-class authority!"

"_Pika..._" Pikachu commented, sighing in resignation. He had almost forgotten how those two loved to trade barbs with each other...

Dawn, on the other hand, tried to come up with a possible explanation for Brock's previous statement. "Well... maybe it just doesn't have to do with anything creepy or frightening, and tourists simply don't care about the Forest as much as they used to." she ventured, though she privately knew that Ash would have insisted for going there anyway. "After all, the forest doesn't look that dangerous from here. At least, not any more dangerous than other places I've been to..."

Gary shrugged and smiled patiently. "Point... but you should know as well as I do that some places are more than meets the eye... anyway, we should get ready and take our things... we're about to stop!" he stated. The harbor was getting closer, and from the outside of the ship, it was possible to see several people standing near the coastline to greet the newcomers... but it wasn't a noisy, hyperactive lot, thankfully. All the people standing there were being very calm and collected, and were standing in orderly lines as the ship slowed down. Ash thought it was a little strange at first... but then, he remembered that Brock had spoken of that place as a quiet, peaceful island, and convinced himself that it was just the inhabitants' way of doing.

Pikachu leapt on the ship's railing and stood on his back paws to take a good look at the islands, with Ash stopping for a moment to pick up his best friend and hold him in his arms. Both of them were curious to discover what sort of new adventures were waiting for them in this place...

**oooooooooo**

"Say, Jessie... you sure we're going in the right direction? I think we left Kin Island behind a little while ago..." Meowth meowed with an hint of mocking in his voice, which obviously didn't do much to lighten the fucsia-haired girl's already sour mood. Team Rocket's hot air balloon had followed Ash's team ever since they had left Knot Island after Ash's battle with Phoebe, but thanks to some unfortunate problems with changing winds, they had lost track of their target, and the balloon had been knocked away from its intended path. And now, it seemed Team Rocket was unable to find their way back...

"Hmph... alright, genius, since you're so much better than me, why don't you show me where we must go, huh?" Jessie snapped as he rolled up the Sevii Island map sh was holding. Further contributing to her frustration, Meowth just shrugged and retorted with what, to him, was something so obvious he shouldn't even have had to mention it...

"And what am I supposed to know about this place, Jessie girl? You were the one who insisted she knew well where to go..." he answered.

Before the two of them could get a quarrel started, James sighed and tried to act as a peacemaker. "Er... well, instead of arguing whose fault this is... don't you think we'd better descend and try to find out which island is this?" he said, hands splayed wide as to keep the two quarreling sides apart from each other. "And maybe we can get some rest and something to eat, too... we've been flying for quite a while now, after all..."

Jessie and Meowth glared at the azure-haired boy, as if telling him not to stick his nose in their quarrel... but a few moments later, they convinced themselves that James did have a point, and arguing was pointless at the moment. Sighing, Meowth got to the balloon and began making it descend towards the island they were flying over. "Meh, guess you've got a point here, James-boy..." he meowed. "Alright, let's try to find a place where we can land. After that, we'll see what we can do..."

Meowth pulled the rope, blowing some hot air out of the balloon, and the trio began getting close to the island, getting a chance o take a better look at it. The side of the island they were in was covered in luxurious green forests, much like the rest of the Sevii Islands up until then... but they all immediately saw that there was something different in the clearing they were about to land in: namely, there seemed to be a few people waiting for them, as incredible as that might have sounded!

"Huh? Who are those guys down there? They look like they're all dressed in black..." Jessie said as she tried to take a better look. In fact, they all seemed to be wearing the standard Team Rocket black uniform, and one of them stood out among the others because of his bright purple hair and matching goatee, not to mention his somewhat shifty expression. They did not seem to be hostile, though... and instead, they seemed to be waiting for James, Jessie and Meowth to come down so that they could give them the greeting they deserved...

With all necessary care, the trio landed their Meowth-ballonn in the clearing, a few dozen feet away from the group of grunts... and as James and Jessie were already trying to think of a way to explain their presence there, the goateed man raised a hand, telling the rest of the grunts that he would be the one to handle the situation.

"Well, well, well... look who decided to visit us! Te famed Jessie, James and Meowth!" Petrel greeted, walking to them with a nonchalant air about himself. "Sure, your fame is thanks to a less than stellar streak of failures, but still... everybody in Team Rocket has heard of you at least once! So I guess you can be proud of yourselves, from a certain point of view!"

"Well, that's not exactly the way we were hoping to become famous..." James meekly protested, knowing all too well which rumours might be circulating about himself and his friends. "But... hold on a sec, who might you be, mister?"

"And most of all, what's this... welcome commitee all about? How did Team Rocket reach here as well? We knew nothing of this!" Jessie exclaimed, hopping off the hot air balloon. Petrel shrugged, not considering the question to be important.

"Well, all in due time, okay?" he answered matter-of-factly. "You just need to know that my name is Petrel, and I'm the second of the four executives our leader, the great Giovanni, has put in command of the new Team Rocket branch in the Sevii Islands! You see... while you were wasting your time chasing after that insignificant Pikachu, our boss was after far bigger fish..."

"Hey, hold on a sec here!" Meowth protested. "Capturing those twerps' Pikachu has been our mission ever since the second episode of the animated series! We're not telling you say we've only been wasting our time!"

Petrel did not seem to care about that comment. "A talking Meowth... meh! If I were you, kids, I would have gone and sold off that Pokemon for an hefty sum, instead of dragging hm around like some sort of pet! Have you got no idea how valuable a talking Pokemon would be?"

Even the meek James felt insulted by that statement, and both members of Team Rocket placed themselves in front of their already fearful companion in a protective way. "Hey, what are you suggesting, pal?" the azue-haired boy exclaimed. "We may be criminals, okay, but we don't betray our friends! And Meowth is our friend, in case it wasn't clear!"

"Yeah! You try taking him, and you'll have to deal with us!" Jessie added.

Meowth's oversized cat eyes sparkled in gratitude, as golden stars lit up all around him! "Thanks, guys... you ARE real friends, after all!"

Petrel moved his hands in front of himself, his smile never fading. "Alright, kids, alright... I was just sayin', is all!" he answered. "Anyway, I'm here to make an interesting proposal to you... one that, I'm sure, you will find to be impossible to refuse!"

Jessie, James and Meowth seemed to lose some of their hostile air, but they didn't completely drop their guard. After all, they still knew too little about that Petrel guy and about Giovanni's new ploy. "Hm? A... proposal?" Jessie repeated Petrel's words. "And... what would that be? What about this project of yours?"

Petrel chuckled, inviting the clumsy criminal trio to follow him. "Hehehee... now, just be a little patient, okay? Come with us, and we'll tell you everything about it! Don't worry, there's no catch behind this..." he answered. "I'll just say that, should you do your job well enough, you might get a chance to impress the boss... and after that, it wouldn't take much for you to regain your former glory, now would it? And you will even have a chance to catch that Pikachu that has been giving you so much grief! What about it? Everybody wins!"

It was too great a chance for the trio to pass it over... and while they did seem to have reservations at first, they needed nothing else to be convinced. After a few scant moments of silence, Jessie and James looked at each other, as if wordlessly asking the other what he/she thought of all this... and one second later, Meowth joined their pensive silence.

"Well, what do you think, guys?" James asked. "If you want my opinion... I don't exactly trust this guy. But it's worth a try, isn't it? After all, we always wanted to capture Pikachu and get back in the boss' graces... and this is as good a chance as any!"

"And this is a great chance to catch two Spearows with one Pokeball, as it were!" Jessie exclaimed, beginning to like the situation more and more. "Okay, we can give it a try! We don't have much to lose anyway!"

"Well said, Jessie! Count me in as well!" Meowth answered, eager for a chance to revert to being Giovanni's favored pet. His feline eyes gleaming with determination, the cat-like Pokemon turned to Petrel and gave him the answer all three of them were in agreement with. "Alright, pal, you got yourself a deal! You just need to tell us what you have in mind, and we're game!"

Petrel rubbed his hands together with clear glee. It was going exactly how he wanted it, and those fools had fallen for it hook, line and sinker! "Oooh, very good, I knew you'd make the right choice for me... er, I mean, for everyone! Alright then, yopu should know that Team Rocket is currently searching for..."

Jessie, James and Meowth's ears seemed to perk up as they listened with rapt attention to Petrel's explanation, never once imagining what they were getting into...

**oooooooooo**

Ash and his friends' first impression about Kin Island being a great place to be were fading away a little, after they had gotten through the narrow path leading to the main city. That was not to say it wasn't a quiet and pleasant place, in fact, it was even a little too quiet; or at least, Ash and Pikachu seemed to think so as they walked among the houses, whose doors and windows wer all closed and locked, and the empty shops. And to think there were so many people at the harbor to greet them, and they all looked glad to see visitors... it all seemed to be justa memory now, and Kin Island's main plaza seemed to have turned into a wasteland...

"When our tourist guide said it was a quiet place... it really meant it!" Misty commented ironically, her hand wiping some sweat from her forehead. It was definitely warmer there than in the other islans they had been to, considering they had moved towards the Equator, and Dawn had even been forced to take off her trademark woolen hat. "I was sure expecting such a city to be a little more lively, though... it sounds like a graveyard as it is!"

Pikachu nodded as he turned to his trainer. "_Pika pi, pika pika pikachu pika pichu?_" he squeaked, to which Ash answered with a goofy laugh and a scratch behind the electric mouse's ear.

"Well, can't blame ya for thinking that, Pikachu... maybe we came here right wen they're having their afternoon nap!" he affirmed. "Well, no prob, that just means we'll find a place in the shade and wait it out. It's not going to last that long, I guess."

Brock and Gary looked unconvinced. "I don't think you got it right, Ashy-boy..." Gary answered. "First off... okay, it might not be the busiest time of the day, but it's still strange that there's nobody out, and everything is closed... don't ya think so?"

"And I don't like this silence as well." Brock stated his opinion. "It almost feels like people are afraid to go out. It's not the 'good' kind of peace and quiet, do I explain myself? There's a strange tension in the air..."

"You're right, Brock... and there's not a soul outside..." Dawn said, admitting to herself that she was starting to get creeped out by the whole business. The sense of solitude was almost overwhelming...

Ash did not know what to answer to that, and he had to admit that his friends weren't wrong. That city was really too quiet for his tastes... and just one second later, in fact, a loud rumbling noise came to break the oppressive silence! A far away rumble, like the buzz of a large insect, that was quickly growing louder and nearer...

"_Pika pi!_" Pikachu warned, pointing to a cloud of dust that was rising in the distance and getting closer. Now that the noise could be heard clearer, Ash could sense that it came from the engines of several motorbikes that, in a few seconds, closed the distance and entered the deserted square, creating a threatening formation of rumbling steel! As the trainers turned in that direction, they saw that they were being surrounded by six nasty-looking individuals wearing leather jackets with several pieces of metal sticking out from them, ripped jeans and black boots, each of them either bald or sporting a colored mohawk. None of them, however, seemed to be the sociable type, considering how they were glaring nastily at the group of friends!

"Heheheee... say, guys, have you seen these suspicious-looking runts?" a burly bald guy, possibly the leader of the gang of bikers, laughed nastily as each member of Ash's group kept a Pokeball ready. "There's somebody here who doesn't know who's boss here in Kin Island!"

"I don't think we have much to complain about, boss! About time some fresh meat came here! The people here are such cowards that, right now, they must be huddling in their little homes... and it has been quite some time since we last had some tourist to play with!" another biker answered. Ash was starting to understand why the city was so suspiciously silent at the moment... and why tourism had hit an all-time low in that place!

"Well, I don't really care who they are or where they're from, as long as they get to entertain us!" a third man, sporting mohawk-style hair and an Arbok tattoo on his forehead, answered. "So, kids, you sure got some guts comin' here now! Guess you don't know who we are, so let me enlighten you! We are the Inferno Angels, the coolest gang in this bunch of islands, and you're in our turf now! Face us in a Pokemon battle, and let us see who's the strongest!"

As the bikers took out their Pokeballs with threatening chuckles, Ash and his friends tried to stand back, but it was clear that they had no chance to do so. The bikers would have caught up very soon.

"I don't like the way they're looking at us, guys..." Dawn said as she tried to keep her calm. Sometimes, one of the bikers pressed on the accelerator in order to make his engine roar, just for the thrll of scaring Ash and his friends a little. "Yeah, this is definitely why this place is so quiet..."

"The people here might be afraid of these bullies..." Ash summed up, before turning his hat backwards and getting ready! "But I'm not the kind of person who is scared so easily! Pikachu, are you ready? We're going to teach these guys a bit of Pokemon attling!"

"_Pika!_" the electric mouse quickly answered. He leapt down from his trainer's shoulder and got in front of the bikers, his cheeks already crackling with electricity, but he was simply laughed atby the overconfident scoundrels.

"Hahahahaaa! Will you look at that runt, guys?" one of the bullies said with an harsh chortle. "He thinks we're afraid of him, the little rodent! Please, blowhard, we could crush you to a pancaketen times before we even have breakfast! Go, Muk!"

The biker threw his Pokeball, letting out a huge, formless blot of toxic mud, very much like Ash's own Muk, with short and stubby arms, and a semi-liquid face that tried to be threatening, but had trouble doing so! "A Muk, huh? That's no big deal for me... Pikachu! You know what to do!" the black-haired teen exclaimed.

"_Pika... CHUUUUUU!_" the Electric-type exclaimed immediately. Almost without warning, a golden sheet of lightning erupted from his diminutive body and overwhelmed the muddy monster, who stiffened painfully, his eyes almost bulging out of his head... then, he dropped to the ground in a daze, his body blackened and smoking for the shock! His owner, who had seemed calm and smug up until a few seconds before, was let speechless at the quick, uncerimonious defeat of his previously undefeated Pokemon! "Wh... What? How did you... ? Who are you, brat? How could you defeat my Muk that easily?"

The gang leader angrily grit his teeth. "Ugh... to heck with that! Let's take him all together, boys! He won't be able to hack it!"

"Sure, boss!" his underlings exclaimed in unison, releasing all of their Pokemon - mostly Poison or Fighting types, but there were a few Dark types in as well - simultaneously. The leader sent out his own fighter as well, a massive and mean-looking Weezing that rose in the air, surrounded in a nimbus of noxious gases. However, Ash's friends were not to be undone by that, and they sent out their companions as well.

"Misty calls... oh, well, I know how this will go... Psyduck!" Misty exclaimed, knowing that her clumsy duck Pokemon would probably pop up all the same. And indeed, Psyduck materialized a split second later in front of one of the gang's Pokemon - a Stunky, a smelly ferret-like Pokemon with purple-and-white fur!

"My turn now!" Dawn commented. "Alright then... Ambipom, get on the stage!"

"Come, Geodude! It's your turn!" Brock exclaimed.

"Umbreon... you do the honors!" Gary stated calmly as he sent out the Dark-type evolution of his starting Pokemon.

"And as for that Weezing... Torterra, go!" Ash concluded, letting the gigantic terrapin out and causing him to materialize in front of the gang's Poison and Fighting types! The bullies looked fearful for a moment, as they had to acknowledge that this time, they were up against someone who was a match with them...

"Er... boss..." one of the bikers murmured, casting aworried glance at the steadily-advancing tortoise. "I... I'm not sure it's a good idea to fight these guys here! Have... have you seen the size of that Torterra? And that Umbreon doesn't look weak either..."

Not intimidated in the least, the gang leader put his fists on his sides and exploded in a loud laugh. "Hahahahaaa! You idiot, you're saying we should be afraid of those kids and their little sidekicks? We've been reigning supreme on this island ever since we began riding the dunes! C'mon, boys, let's get rid of them!"

Misty frowned before that guy's stubbornness. If he thought he was up against weaklings, she would be ready to prove him wrong! "Oh, really? That just means you have only been facing beginners until now! Psyduck, use a Psychic attack!"

Psyduck's vacant expression did not change, and he tilted his head on one side, as if asking himself what his trainer meant by that. Misty shook her head in disbelief, one split second before a Primeape, belonging to a balding, muscle-bound biker, struck him between the eyes with a powerful Karate Chop, leaving Psyduck stunned for one second! The duck-like Pokemon flinched for a second... but soon after, his headache intensified, and his normally vacuous eyes flared up, shining a dangerous shade of red!

"That was a big mistake, cue ball!" Misty commented with a wry smile. "You cause Psyduck's headache to worsen, and his psychic powers increase as well! You should remeber that, next time!"

"What? What do you mean, you little..." the biker began saying. But he was not able to finish his sentence before Psyduck's Psychic attack went off, engulfing the ferocious monkey Pokemon in a nimbus of mental energy and tossing him back to his trainer, like a fallen leaf in the wind! Trainer, motorbike and Pokemon fell to the ground in a dazed heap, and remained there!

"There. That's what I meant!" Misty commented, thanking her clumsy duck Pokemon with a gentle stroke on his head. "Thanks, Psyduck! In the end, you are a reliable Pokemon after all!"

The other enemies weren't faring much better against the rest of Ash's friends: Gary's Umbreon was fighting a Hitmonlee... and while, in normal circumstances, the Dark-type would have been in danger against a Fighting-type, Gary's greater experience and skill were quickly subverting what seemed to be an obvious outcome! A well-aimed Confuse Ray stunned Hitmonlee, who began blindly rushing around and kicking the air, in a vain attempt to strike at something, anything at all! Then, Umbreon leapt up and disappeared before everybody's eyes... only to reappear at Hitmonlee's side one second later and strike at him with a spectacular Faint Attack!

Geodude was easily taking down a Murkrow belonging to the bikers, forcing the crow Pokemon on the ground with a well-aimed Rock Throw. As the rocky Pokemon raised his fists in the air to celebrate his victory, Ambipom was easily taking down a Nidorino who had tried to stab her with his poisonous horn: first Ambipom had evaded the attack with a swift backflip... then, she had stood up on her hands, and had used a Doubleslap attack, hitting him with the hands on her tails!

"Hmm... you brats seem to be a little tougher than I first thought... but can you do the same with me? I doubt so..." the bikers' leader chuckled as he and his Weezing approached Ash, Pikachu and Torterra. "I wanna see whether your big turtle can beat my Weezing! He's my gang's ace Pokemon, so... I'm afraid your luck has run out! Weezing, strike with a Sludge Bomb!"

The toxic Pokemon let out one of his raucous calls, then widened one of his two mouths and shot out a huge blot of toxic mud that flew towards Torterra... but Ash reacted in time and gave the right order at the right moment!

"Torterra, Withdraw!" the young boy exclaimed. The giant terrapin grunted and pulled back inside of his own shell, dodging the globe of venomous sludge just in time, and causing it to splash in front of the Grass / Ground type, a few inches away from his head! A few sprays hit Torterra's shell, but the damage was not as great as it might have been, because of Torterra's Ground type shielding him for the Poison-type attack! The biker leader grit his teeth in rage as his Pokemon's best attack was voided... but he still felt as if he was in the position to boast of his Pokemon's superiority.

"Heh, not half bad, kiddo... you look like you and your Pokemon know your stuff!" he answered. "But your Torterra won't be able to do much, anyway! Thanks to his Levitation ability, your Torterra's Ground-type attacks can't reach him..."

Ash was probably not even listening. "Torterra, use Stone Edge!" he exclaimed as he raised his hand. The tortoise popped out of his shell and struck the earth with one of his huge paws, raising up a shower of pointed stones that rained upon the now-defenceless Weezing, never allowing him a chance to recover! With a grunt, the Poison-type was overwhelmed by the flying stones and thrown backwards several inches... then, he dropped to the ground and fainted in front of his flabbergasted trainer! The rest of the Inferno Angels' Pokemon had already been defeated by Ash's friends, marking the gang's defeat!

"Stone Edge?" Dawn asked curiously, remembering that even Paul's Torterra knew such a move.

Ash winked and gave a thumbs-up. "Well, Paul caught me off guard quite a few times with this move, so I thought it would be a good idea to teach it t my own Torterra! AAnd it looks like I was right... look how easily it defeated that Weezing!"

"_Geodude!_" Brock's Pokemon grunted, standing on guard and glaring at the defeated gang of bikers... and a few moments later, his rocky body began glowing brightly and increasing in size, becoming more robust and more impressive!

"Hey, will you look at that!" Misty said. "Looks like Brock's Geodude is finally evolving..."

And in fact, a few moments later, the light coming from Geodude's body faded, and the Pokemon's evolution became visible to all: a Graveler, a powerful Rock / Ground Pokemon resembling a jagged, spherical rock with two short legs and four powerful arms, and a grim face encased in the middle of its body. He was now showing his rocky muscles to the gang members, in an attempt to scare them away! "Yeah, I saw that!" Brock said, with a pleased smile. "My Geodude finally evolved into a Graveler... excellent job, my friend!"

"_Graveler!_" the new Pokemon growled jovially as he turned to his trainer and smiled... before turning back to the terrified gang! The bikers, who had now lost all of their aggressive attitude, started retreating... first by recalling their Pokemon, and then jumping on their bikes and putting the pedal to the metal!

"I'm not staying here one moment more!"

"Game over, guys... we're outta here, boss!"

"Huh? Wha...? Hey, hold on a sec! You cowards, you can't just leave me here!" the gang leader exclaimed as his men began fleeing all around him!

"I'm afraid they just did..." Gary commented with an ironic shrug, his smile hinting at a bit of superiority. "So much for being the coolest gang around here, huh? You didn't exactly do much of a good job, if you want my opinion."

Understanding that there was nothing more he could do, the gang leader grit his teeth, recalled his defeated Weezing and got on his bike before starting his engine and racing after his men. However, before fleeing, he took his time to throw one last threat at the ones who defeated him, trying to at least get ome scant consolation out of that. "Darn... you stupid twits! Don't think for a moment this is over! The Inferno Angels will get their revenge, you haven't seen the last of us!"

The motorbike roared as it sped away, and the Inferno Angels leader ran for it under Ash and his friends' disapproving glances. Misty did not resist the temptation to throw a snarky remark about that guy's behaviour. "Hmm. I think that sentence would have been more impressive had he not pronounced it while he was running away with his tail between his legs." the redheaded Water Pokemon expert commented as she leaned to her Psyduck, who still seemed a little dazed. "Thanks, Psyduck... even if you come out of your Pokeball when I'm not calling you! Well, I kinda got used to it by now... Okay, you can return!"

Ash and his Pokemon were congratulating their Pokemon as well... especially Brock, who was regarding his new Graveler with pride and joy. The Rock / Ground Pokemon himself was really proud of having evolved, even though he still hadn't had a chance to show off his newfound power.

"Well, Graveler... I must say, you did a great job!" Brock said, patting the rocky Pokemo on one of his shoulders... or what could reasonably pass for it, anyway. "I'm glad to have you back on my team, my friend!"

"_Graveler!_" Graveler roared proudly.

An applause coming from one of the nearby houses caught their attention, and Ash and his friends all turned in that direction, right in time to see some grateful-looking people coming out of the houses, congratulating them for defeating the Inferno Angels!

"_Pika chu?_" Pikachu asked as he looked around. The doors were opening one after the other, letting out several inhabitants of Kin Island. All those coming out wanted to thank Ash and his friends for their victory, and not just for that!

"I think our victory impressed them..." Brock commented, his voice somewhat muffled by the applause reverberating around. The people's festive cheering was further proof of what the dark-skinned boy had said.

"You did it!"

"Congratulations, everyone!"

"About time someone took them down!"

"You're great!"

Dawn smiled as she and Ambipom received their share of praises. "Well, I guess we don't have to wonder about that anymore! Those bikers were terrorizing this city, and now the people are glad that we managed to chase them away!"

"That's exactly it." a forty-something man with black hair and mustache, dressed in white shirt, beige pants and brown shoes, answered. "Those scoundrels, the Inferno Angels, came here a couple months ago... and taking advantage of the fact that there weren't strong enough trainers to face them, they started to boss us around. At least until you got there, nobody could stop us... by defeating them, you managed to get us rid of a very bothersome problem, so... please, let us thank us our own way! Today, we celebrate your and your Pokemon's victory!"

The people began clapping loudly again, leaving Ash, Brock, Pikachu, Graveler and all the others quite flabbergasted... but still, they were happy to have started on the right track with the inhabitants and to have helped them out with their own problems! So, deciding that there was nothing wrong with enjoying their popularity a little, Ash and Pikachu stepped forward, raising their arms and accepting the congratulations! "Er... well... hehehehee... Thanks! Thank you, everyone! It was a pleasure for us!" the young champion exclaimed. "If those jerks show their mugs here again, we'll deal with them the same way!"

"_Pika, pika... pikachu!_" Pikachu confirmed.

"Oy. Who'd ever believe that?" Misty chuckled. "We got to Kin Island only one hour ago, and Ash Ketchum has already become some sort of local hero. Still... I don't think there's anything wrong if we join the celebrations ourselves! What do you say, guys?"

"You're right, I guess." Gary stated. "I kinda missed having the spotlight on me, if I have to be frank!"

"_Umbreon!_" his star Pokemon answered, the golden rings on his body glowing majestically as he did so.

**oooooooooo**

The country fair was nothing really fancy, and in fact, it had been put up somewhat hastily, but Ash and his friends still thought it was a little much, for what they had done! After all, they had done nothing but defend themselves from a bunch of over-aggressive bullies...

"Well, let it never be said that the people of Kin Island do things by halves!" the young boy commented in slight embarassment. "I mean, I know we've done you a favor by taking down those bikers... but aren't you overdoing it a little?"

"Hahahahaaa! No worries, my boy! Think nothing of that, and celebrate with us!" the moustachoed man, who had revealed himself to be the major of the coastline city, answered. "And it's only fair that visitors get greeted as well as they deserve! So... don't be shy, and party to your heart's content! By the way... not all of you are from Kanto, right?"

"In fact, I come from Sinnoh..." Dawn answered, after handing a pastry to her Piplup, which the cute little penguin immediatly began stuffing his cheeks with. "Hey, Piplup, take care not to choke on that! Er, I was saying... I'm from Sinnoh, and I'm here in Kanto for... a study vacation, I guess you could say."

"Oh, sure! Now I do recall you! I saw you on TV at the finals of the Sinnoh Grand Festival and the Sinnoh Pokemon Championship! Pretty impressive stuff, I have to say, and your opponents were really skilled too!" the major answered. "I wish we had such great trainers, around here... sadly, only recently did our youngsters become interested in creating a Pokemon League in the Sevii Island, and the project is still only taking a few tentative steps. And only recently did we of Kin Island start training in order to be able to provide the League with a decent Gym Leader. It doesn't help that... er... well, never mind about that! I don't think you're here to listen to depressing stuff..."

But Ash and his friends had already understood that something was out of place there, and they couldn't just pretend they had heard nothing. "Er... not to be nosy or anything, mister... but, do you have any other problem, perhaps?" Ash asked, temporarily leaving aside the surprising news that the Pokemon League was going to expand itself to Sevii Islands as well.

The major saw that there was no way to drop the discussion and, scratching his temple with a single finger, he began looking or he right words to say what had recently happened. "Well... it's kind of a long story, but... okay, I'll try to be short and to the point. Some days ago, some of our children have disappeared after entering the mysterious Berry Forest, on the other island. They were going to train their Pokemon there, and they were also after the Berries that spontaneously grow in that place... but none of them came back, and we're afraid t go looking for them on our own... rumour has it, that cruel and vindicative Pokemon dwell in the woods, keeping our children prisoner. We... we would need some skilled trainers with strong Pokemon, if we want to have a chance of bringing our children back! And you... well, since you've beaten the Inferno Angels, you can surely be trusted! Should you refuse, we won't blame you, of course... but... well, if you could get to the Berry Forest and find a way to rescue our children... we'd be eternally grateful to you!"

Misty was the first to speak up, and she didn't need to think about that too long. "Well, it's not like this is the first time we end up in a somewhat complex situation, so I have no problem with helping out! What do you say to that, guys?"

"I'm totally cool with it, Misty!" Ash readily answered. "So, mister... rest assured we will do our best to solve this mystery!"

"_Pikachu!_" the yellow mouse confirmed.

Gary smiled to himself, having had a hunch that things would end up like that. "Well, looks like we cannot go anywhere without smething strange happening..." he commented. "Not that I mind, actually... I would like those kids to return to their homes myself, and I'm also curious to know who could have done this and for what reason. So... count me in!"

"I guess you might as well say, count on all of us!" Dawn stated. Brock was nodding in assent, and her Piplup was raising his short wings in the air, giving what was probably meant to be a warlike yell. A hopeful smile managed to make its way on the major's face, as well as that of the people who were with him.

"We'd forever be grateful to you, if you could help us with that..." the major stated. "Especially seeing that my daughter Lostelle is among the disappeared children. So, you see, this is kind of personal for me as well." He cast a glance at the ground, expressing all of his fear and anxiety for his daughter's fate. Which further convinced Ash and his friends that they had to go to the Berry Forest and get her and the other children back.

"Of course... no problem!" Ash stated. "Don't worry, mister, before evening comes, we'll have found Lostelle and the other kids, and we'll bring them home! C'mon, guys, we cannot afford to waste time! Onward to Berry Forest!"

"_Pika pi... Pika pika chu, pika pika?_" Pikachu called after him, reminding his trainer of a very important problem... and Ash stopped dead, widening his eyes in disbelief!

"Er..." he murmured, before admitting the truth with an embarassed smile. "Well... Pikachu has a point, I was so hasty that I didn't even ask the way for Berry Forest!"

"That's Ash Ketchum for you..." commented Misty, shaking her head with an amused smile. How she missed those moments of clumsiness from Ash, even if they drove her up the wall at times...

**oooooooooo**

A few explanations and preparatives after, Ash's team has left the coastal town and was walking along the road the major had pointed out to them. After crossing an open prairie covered with wild flowers and jagged rocks, they had gotten close to Bond Bridge, taking advantage of the chance to look around and admire the view. It was late in the afternoon, and the descending sun gave an even more majestic feel to the whole place, with the seemingly endless ocean, and the millenial forest extending in front of them. A fresh breeze coming from the sea helped making the climate a little more tolerable than it had been earlier that day, even managing to make it pleasant. Pikachu and Piplup were particularly vivacious now, and were racing each other around the bushes and the rocks, with Brock's newly-evolved Graveler having had to recall them a couple times... like, for example, when Pikachu had found himself face-to-face with a Parasect who didn't look too happy about being awakened from a good slumber!

"_Pika!_" the electric mouse sneezed as he and Piplup were forced to turn tail in order not to be put to sleep by a well-placed Spore attack from the annoyed mushroom-bug.

"Hehehee... maybe you should keep it down a little, you two!" Brock chuckled as he walked alongside his Graveler. "It just wouldn't do if you got knocked out before our quest even began... we need to be on our best form, if we are to find the missing children."

"Brock's right, Piplup... don't get into trouble, ok?" Dawn told her penguin Pokemon as she bent to pick him up. Now, the team had managed to reach Bond Bridge, overlooking a large lake in which several people in swimsuits were splashing around, enjoying what remained of the day... and a little after that, Ash and his friends got back on a paved road that proceeded for several yards before entering the deep forest, from which a pungent smell of flowers and wild berries could already be felt from there. Several Butterfree, Beautifly and other Bug-type Pokemon were fluttering around, attracted by the scent, and the melodious calls of Pokemon like Taillow, Kricketot and the like could be heard clearly all around them. Right in front of the forest's entrance, a sign had been put up, with the words:

"BERRY FOREST - BEWARE!"

scribbled in front of it, just in case anyone still neeeded a hint.

Pikachu stopped for a moment and glared at the entrance, as if to psych himself up. "_Pika..._" he squeaked before turning to the rest of the team.

"Alright, guys, here we are..." Gary stated. "We'd better let some of our Pokemon out now, you never know what we're gonna meet in there..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And just as Brock's Geodude finally gets to evolve into a Graveler (seriously how many years has he been with our favourite womanizing Rock-type expert?) Ash and co. get their first taste of the 3rd of the Sevii Islands, Kin Island! A new adventure, and possibly another battle, waits for them inside the mysterious forest... will they manage to get out of this victorious, once again? Next chapter will have the answer, for now... please review!**

**See you soon! **


	27. Rescue In The Berry Forest

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Here I am!**

**This has been a rather tiring period for me, and I have been concerned for the fact that my Internet connections were acting screwy, and the fact that school is, frankly speaking, exhausting me. Luckily, I can always make some time for you readers, and so... here I am writing the next chapter to my Pokemon story, which seems to be still doing good! At least, judging by how many people still keep adding this to their favourites or story watch...**

**So, last time, we left Ash and his friends on the third Sevii Island, Kin Island, to deal with a troublesome gang of bikers and a case of kidnapping... as of now, our friends are heading towards the Berry Forest in order to search for the children who disappeared mysteriously inside of it! This chapter will follow them as they make their way through the risky woods, where they will come face to face with the truth! Will they rescue the children, or will they meet the same fate?**

**To know that, you just need to keep on reading! Have fun!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 27 - Rescue In The Berry Forest**

As they were walking through it, looking carefully around themselves, Ash, Pikachu and their friends didn't think Berry Forest had anything markedly different from any other forest they had visited, like Viridian Forest or the like, if not for the fact that, mixed with the old oak and ilex trees, there were several specimen of Mediterranean flora such as pine trees. The pleasant scent of resin, flowers, basil and other natural scents could be felt all around, and several small plants, filled with delicious-looking berries, seemed to spontaneously grow here and there, offering easy food for all the Pokemon living in that mysterious place. It was a rather impressive sight, and overall, Berry Forest really didn't seem like a dangerous place, even now that the sun was slowly setting, and the trees were casting dark shadows all over the place. Ash and his companions had trouble imagining that beautiful forest as a dangerous place, even now...

"Still, keep your eyes peeled, guys..." Brock correctly warned, figuring that someone might be deceived by the pleasant vistas. "There don't seem to be problems as of now, but I think there's something wrong with this forest. Even if I can't really put my finger on it..."

"Don't worry, Brock, we know what to do..." Ash reassured him as the team reached a large patch of wild grass that reached up to their ribs. Both trainers and Pokemon were on the lookout for any danger, and Pikachu was the first to perk his ears up when he heard a suspicious rustle coming from a bush not too distant from the rest of the team... a bush filled with gaudy, strangely shaped purple berries! Piplup, who was still walking alongside the electric mouse, turned that way in alarm when Pikachu tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the bush.

"_Pika pika! Pikachu!_" the Electric-type squeaked.

"_Piplup?_" Piplup blinked twice, as he stared intently at the bush his friend was pointing to.

"What's the matter, Pikachu? Did you hear anything strange coming from there?" Ash asked, and the electric rodent nodded, repeating his name once again and motioning for the rest of the team to follow him.

"_Pika pi! Pikachu pi! Pika pika pikachu!_"

"I think we're getting closer already, guys..." Gary commented, following his friend and rival in the thick grass. Carefully, Brock approached the berry plant himself and took a look, frowning in surprise as he discovered that, just a little further away, the forest opened up in a large clearing where the grass had been meticulously cut, giving the impression that someone had set up a garden in the middle of the woods! There was surely the hand of a human behind that, or at least that's what Ash and his friends wanted to believe...

"Well, I definitely did not see this one coming..." Dawn whispered, holding her Piplup in her arms as the team hid behind the vegetation in order to get a better understanding of the situation. There was no one around, except for some harmless Caterpie or Wurmple crawling around, at least for now. "What do you say, guys? You think there is a connection between the state this place is in, and the disappeared kids?"

"_Piplup, lup, lup!_" the penguin Pokemon chirped.

Misty slowly nodded her head at that. "Well, personally I don't see many other possibilities... but let's lay low for now, I think I can hear some people coming!"

The sound of moving leaves warned the team, who quickly ducked in the middle of the vegetation, with Pikachu and Piplup slipping beneath the berry plant and taking a look from a safe position, trying to hide their vivacious colors among the large green leaves. A few seconds later, just as Misty had said, someone came out of a winding road on the other side of the clearing, and advanced in the freshly-cut grass, approaching a thick set of bushes on which other kinds of berries - mostly Oran Berries - were growing: two children, a boy and a girl around Dawn's age. The girl had long pink hair tied in a ponytail that reached halfway down her back, and from the descriptions they had heard from Kin Island's mayor, Ash and his friends quickly realized who she was!

"Hey, guys, did you see her?" Ash whispered to his friends, peeking out of his hideout just as much as he needed to get a clear view without getting seen. "That's Lostelle, the mayor's daughter, and she seems to be doing rather well... but I don't understand what she's doing in such a place..."

"Hold on a second, Ash..." Brock said as he took a look himself. "Take a look at those children's eyes, there's something wrong with them."

With some surprise, Ash focused his attention on the children's eyes, and even from the distance they were at, he could make out a rather frightening thing - namely, that both Lostelle and her friend, who had now stopped to gather some Oran Berries, had a dull, lifeless look to their eyes, like they were zombies mindlessly staring in front of themselves without seeing anything! In fact, now that Ash was taking a better look, they did seem to be acting in a trance, as they put most of the berries in a large basket the boy was carrying, while eating some of them. This was not the first time Ash and his friends had come across something like this...

"What's with their eyes? They don't even seem to be paying attention to the things around them..." Dawn noted, peeking from the hideout as well. "They only seem interested in the berries they're picking."

"I'm sure I already saw that somewhere..." Ash noted to himself, trying to dig into his memory. He did remember that he and his friends had solved a similar problem several years before, but he had trouble recalling the exact occurrence. Anyway, Ash was not the kind of person to dwell on such uncertainties, and decided the time for temperance was past. "Oh, well, that hardly matter now! What do you say, guys? Do we jump out of here and catch them off guard?"

Brock gently but firmly disagreed, holding Ash's shoulder in order to stop him from doing something reckless. "Not now, Ash... I think it's a better idea to wait it out, and then follow those children. Maybe they can take us to the root of this problem." he stated. "Besides which, I agree with you that we've already seen something like this before." 

Ash frowned, a little dubious... but quickly shook himself out of it when the two children, still oblivious to the fact that they were being watched, finished their meal and started picking berries from other plants, before placing them in the basket along with all the others. They kept picking up berries until their basket was almost full, then started going back in the direction they had come from, still ignorant of Ash and his friends...

"Okay, I guess we can follow them now. Let's try not to lose sight of them." Gary stated as the team cautiously exited their hideout and advanced in the clearing, taking extra care not to step on something that might have given them away. For a second, Piplup eyed the Oran Berry plant and was tempted to go there and pluck one of them... but he sighed and shook his head, reminding himself that there was still a problem to solve. Luckily, Dawn understood what his problem was, and caressed him on the head to reassure him.

"Don't worry, Piplup... after we solve this problem, you will be able to eat as many of those as you want! Right now, let's focus on those children, okay?" said the blue-haired preteen. The small penguin-like Pokemon chirped in satisfaction as he and his trainer joined the rest of the group along the winding road Lostelle and the other child had taken. Taking extreme care as they advanced, Ash's team foolowed the lost children on their way, passing through a thick part of the forest covered in strange wild plants... until Pikachu, taking a good look in front of himself, saw a large, century-old oak tree rising from the center of another clearing, half-hidden by the thick vegetation. Keeping his voice as low as he possibly could, the electric mouse pointed to the strange new sight, and his friends slowed down in order to take a look at it from a safe position.

"And now... what's that about? It seems to me that something has been built around that huge tree..." Misty commented after taking a good look at the tree for several seconds. In fact, as they carefully approached the ancient oak tree, they could see that several improvised shelters had been built around it, in the form of shoddy wooden shafts and tents built with branches and blankets. Several children, none of them older than ten or eleven, could be seen walking around, together with several Pokemon, mostly Grass or Bug types that seemed to act as guardians of the improvised city. What stood out the most to Ash and his friends, though, was a larger and better-kept wooden hut placed right in front of the oak tree, and several baskets filled with berries of various kinds placed nearby. Some of the children were adding more baskets, in an almost deferencial way...

"What in the world is that?" Brock asked in wonder. "Looks like... all the disappeared kids are here and have created some sort of village all around that tree! But... who are they bringing all those berries to?"

"I think we'll discover that pretty soon." Gary stated. With a simple gesture of his hand, he took a Pokeball out of his belt and let his Umbreon out, as he and the other trainers tried approaching undetected to the strange village in the middle of the woods. The fact that several Beedrill and a Dustox were patrolling the area made that rather difficult to do...

Gary's Umbreon advanced in front of the group and sneaked towards the largest of the wooden huts, his eyes narrowing as he tried to get a good visual. Luckily, he didn't have to wait long before its inhabitant came out, an hand raised as if to greet the kids: it was a humanoid, yellow-skinned Pokemon, a little more than three feet tall, with a rotund, overlarge head and a short crown of white fur around his neck, holding an hypnotist's pendulum in one of his hands. In any case, the long nose and the pointed ears were a dead giveaway to the Pokemon's species.

"Hmmm... that's an Hypno! Now I think I can see the whole picture..." Brock whispered. "The disappeared kids are all there, right in front of us: that Hypno is keeping them with him by holding them in thrall with his Hypnosis, so that they will serve him. And he even had them and the Pokemon build those wooden houses and tents so that they can always stay with him. Regularly, the cildren go out and pick up berries to feed themselves and Hypno... and since berries sprout like mushrooms in this place, he and the kidnapped children can live off the fruits of the earth without fear that he might be discovered."

"Well, that's pretty clever, I must say. And since this forest has a pretty spooky reputation, nobody comes to invesigate, and he can keep the children with himself for as long as he wants..." Dawn completed the reasoning. Her Piplup chirped in indignation as he glared at the HYpno that, almost as soon as he had come out of his hut, had begun happily feasting on some of the berries. The hypnotist Pokemon smiled in content and nodded to each of the children, before picking handfuls of berries from the nearest basket and handing them to his "guests". Piplup made an attempt to dash forward and attack Hypno, but he was stopped just in time by Pikachu.

"_Piplup, pip?_" the penguin Pokemon protested.

Pikachu shook his head, reccomending him to be careful. "_Pika pichu... pikachu pichu pika chu!_" he squeaked, pointing at the many Pokemon surrounding the large tree. They had to wait for a more favorable moment to approach the tree, and even Gary's Umbreon was quick to nod in approval of Pikachu's careful attitude. The Dark-type Eevee evolution was already starting to think of a way to get close enough without being seen... when an enraged buzz, coming from above their heads, had the trainers jump about one foot in the air! A particularly zealous Beedrill had swept down to search among the thicker vegetation... and her compound eyes had quickly caught sight of Ash and his friends! In alarm, she gave a loud buzz that quickly warned all the nearby Pokemon and children!

"Oh, no... we got caught!" Ash exclaimed as he quickly stood up from his hiding place. The Beedrill raised her sting-hands and tried to impale Gary's Umbreon with a Twineedle attack, but Pikachu was faster than she was and smacked her right in the face with an Iron Tail attack, sending the gigantic hornet sprawling ignobly on the dusty road! Unfortunately, more sentry Pokemon began closing in... and the alarmed Hypno interrupted his meal and hid behind the hypnotized children, who were already producing their Pokeballs to defend their "friend". While Ash and his friends were obviously the better trainers, they were hopelessly outnumbered...

"Darn, just what we didn't need! Look how many of them there are!" Misty exclaimed, shivering in disgust as some Bug-type Pokemon fluttered far too close for her comfort. "Ugh... you... stay away from me, you freak! Misty calls... Starmie!"

Misty's signature Pokemon popped up in front of the team, immediately followed by Brock's Croagunk and Gible, Dawn's Mamoswine and Togekiss, Gary's Kingler and Arcanine... and finally Ash's Infernape, all standing in a circle around their trainers and defending them for the many Pokemon coming from all sides! Pikachu was the first to attack, hitting a fluttering Dustox with a Thunderbolt before it could use its Sleep Powder on them, and the giant moth stiffened in pain and fell to the ground in a smoking heap.

"Well done, Pikachu! A great start!" Ash exclaimed, but he was well aware that the fight had only just begun. Several Pokemon, belonging to the hypnotized children, appeared in front of the team and began closing in...

"But even if we did start out well, there are too many of them..." Brock commented as his Croagunk too down a Tangela with a well-placed Poison Jab. Gible was handling a Weepinbell, catching it by its vines and slamming it on the ground, but he was almost hit by another Beedrill's Pin Missile as he did so. In the meanwhile, Starmie had managed to knock out a menacing Diglett with a Water Pulse attack, while Mamoswine had plowed his way through a bunch of over-aggressive Sentret, dispersing the squirrel-like Pokemon with powerful shakes of his enormous head. With a warlike yell, Infernape struck down an approaching Jumpluff with a Fire Punch, but he was forced to retreat immediately after as a bunch of vengeful Pidgey, Spearow and Doduo swarmed him...

Unfortunately, the initial advantage Ash and his friend had was doomed to vanish soon enough, unless they found a way to even the odds...

"Brock's right, we can't handle that many of them!" Dawn exclaimed, as her Piplup, after knocking out a Trapinch with a well-placed Ice Beam, was now having trouble keeping up with a Magnemite. "And even if we could... our Pokemon would be too tired to fight Hypno!"

"Then, we need to take down that Hypno right now! Since he's the one responsible far all this, maybe if we defeat him, the children will be freed from his powers!" Ash said. "Pikachu... try to get close to Hypno and hit him with Thunder Wave!"

"Help him out, Umbreon!" Gary said, as his Arcanine and Kingler were keeping the surrounding Pokemon away. The electric mouse and the black Eevee evolution ran towards a group of hostile-looking children forming a wall between them and Hypno... and Umbreon did a perfect Double Team, jumping up and splitting in several after-images. Pikachu used an Agility attack, doubling is already considerable speed and weaving in and out the crowd of enemy Pokemon trying to stop him. There was no competition: Pikachu was far too strong and experienced for those novices to stop.

Hypno frowned in worry and tried to retreat. Those weren't your cookie-cutter trainers: he was dealing with experts, especially the ones with the Pikachu and the Umbreon. And before the Psychic Pokemon could think of another way, Umbreon jumped over the hypnotized children and swept down on Hypno, baring his claws at him! Hypno jumped back and dodged just in the nick of time, then retaliated with an Headbutt that sent the Dark-type reeling. Knowing all too well that his psychic powers were useless against Umbreon, Hypno was trying to at least buy himself some time... and he seemed to be doing a good job at that too, as Umbreon took a couple seconds to recover from that blow. More than enough time for two children to send out their Pokemon at him, a Mankey and an Hitmontop! Umbreon frowned, understanding that those two were opponents that could give him serious trouble...

But luckily, Pikachu was quick to interfere, launching himself at the monkey Pokemon and hitting him with a perfectly-executed flying kick, which gave Umbreon more than enough time to work up one of his attacks! Hitmontop started spinning like a top towards Umbreon, trying to hit him with his lethal kicks, but the Dark-type was able to get away in time, and retaliated with a timely Confuse Ray, whose effects were immediate: the Fighting-type stopped cold for a split-second, then started spinning in the opposite direction and towards the flabbergasted Hypno, whose eyes bugged out comically out of his head! The hypnotic Pokemon dodged madly in an attempt to avoid the out-of-control Hitmontop... but this brought him right in the path of the charging Pikachu, whose cheek pouches flashes with lightning and released a speedy Thunder Wave that overwhelmed the Psychic-type and froze him in place, electrical discharges painfully coursing through his body! One instant later, Hypno remained paralyzed... and Umbreon jumped up once again and seemingly disappeared into thin air, before reappearing right behind Hypno and slashing at him with his short claws! Umbreon's Faint Attack struck the paralyzed Psychic-type and sent him sprawling on the ground... and one split second later, all the children under his control stopped cold, blinking in confusion, as if they did not know how they had ended up there, and they had just woken up from a long dream. Hypno's influence had been broken with his defeat.

"Huh? Wha... what's going on here? Why are we here, in the first place?" one of them asked after rubbing his face with his hand.

"And... why are our Pokemon out of their Pokeballs? Where do those guys come from?" Lostelle asked as she noticed Ash, his friends and all of their Pokemon standing in front of them. Most of the enslaved Pokemon had stopped fighting the moment Hypno had fallen in defeat, but a few Beedrill were still trying to swarm Gible, who was having an hard time dodging all those deadly stingers. Finally, the earth drake decided that enough was enough... and after putting some distance between himself and the giant hornets, he turned to them and opened his mouth to release his trademark move...

"Oh, snap..." Brock said as he recognized the move. "Quick, everyone, get away from here! Now!"

Ash, Pikachu and their friends didn't even need to hear that and scattered away, taking shelter behind a few bushes just as Gible's attack finished charging, creating a burst of orange spheres of energy that sped all around him, striking the attacking Beedrill full force... although one of the shots misfired and landed dangerously close to Piplup, causing him to jump up and chirp in alarm! The stunned hornet Pokemon fell to the ground in a heap, as the hapless penguin Pokemon began protesting loudly about Gible's aiming skills, or lack thereof! Luckily, just after the usual mayhem caused by Gible's attack, the battlefield was quiet once again. Just as everyone had predicted, Hypno's defeat had solved the problem at its root... though now there was the problem of explaining to the kids just what had happened, and bringing them out of the forest.

"Well, once again, that unknown attack was a blessing... pity it's not the most accurate ever." Brock commented as the team exited their shelter. Luckily, those Beedrill were the last Pokemon still standing, and the kidnapped children had priority anyway.

"Hey, guys, are you alright?" Ash asked, reaching Lostelle and the kidnapped children, who were looking at him interrogatively.

"Well... yeah, I guess so..." the pink-haired child answered, after rubbing her eyes and clearing her visual. "But... how did we end up in this forest? I only remember... that I had come here to pick up a few berries for my Pokemon... and as I was doing that, an Hypno came in front of me... and after that, it's all blank..."

"Then, that's just what we suspected... this Hypno here has hypnotized the children and forced them to stay here with him." Misty commented, casting a disapproving glance at the Psychic-type, who was now standing up with a forlorn expression on his face. Pikachu, Umbreon and Piplup were keeping a close eye on him, in case he tried anything... "Now I do remember when something like that happened... it was during our journey through Kanto, an Hypno mesmerized me into thinking I was a Seel!"

Dawn sweatdropped at the idea of Misty mimicking a Seel... but soon after, the blue-haired girl turned to the defeated Hypno. "Well, I guess Hypno owes us some explanation." she stated, as even some of the kidnapped children were keeping their eyes on the hypnotic Pokemon.

"_Pika pichu pi, pikachu pika pika pikachu_?" Pikachu asked, hands on his hips as he stood by the Psychic-type, who was keeping his head low as if in shame. Piplup seemed to want to reiterate the question, placing himself in front of Hypno, his small chest sticking outwards in indignation.

"_Piplup pip!_"

"_Hypno..._" Hypno answered as he shook his head in resignation. Ash got the distinct impression that the Psychic Pokemon was aware that he had done a bad thing, and was sincerely repetant about it. "_Hypnooooo... hypno!_"

"_Pikachu?_" Pikachu answered, one of his ears perking up in surprise, and his attitude softening up somewhat. Even Umbreon and Piplup seemed to be more sympathetic towards Hypno now... and that went double when Pikachu turned to his trainer in order to explain things. "_Pikachu pika, pika pikachu!_"

"Oh... I see!" Ash nodded slowly. "Well, guys... it seems Hypno did this just because he was feeling lonely, living in these woods on his own, and with no Pokemon ever wanting to be his friend. He simply wanted someone to keep him company, even if he used some... well, not so nice ways to make them stay."

As the others in his team remained silent - especially Infernape, who had gone through a similar experience himself - Ash turned once again to the hypnotic Pokemon, and gently placed his hand on his rotund head, speaking with a mixture of compassion and firmness. "Hypno... we can understand why you did that, really. You were feeling lonely, and this is a terrible thing to feel. We understand that you wanted to end your solitude and have someone always stay by your side. Still, you need to understand that what you have done was a bad thing as well. You have taken these kids away from their families, and furthermore, you didn't really make friends with them. You just forced them to stay here with you..."

"_Hypno..._" Hypno sadly answered, nodding his head in understanding. He seemed to be sincerely repetant, to the point where Ash and his friends saw no reason why they should stay angry at him.

"Yeah... we understand that, Hypno..." Dawn answered as she gently smiled to the Psychic-type. "You were okay with feeling like you had a lot of friends... but you did understand that this is not the right way to do it, right?"

When Hypno nodded again, Gary cleared his throat and tried to propose a solution. "Alright, then. Since you understand that too, Hypno, I guess it is only fair that you do something to make up for that, right?" the young researcher proposed. "Now... we have to bring alll these kids back to their families, and it would be a good idea if you came and explained yourself with everyone."

"_Eon!_" Umbreon closed his eyes and nodded once in assent. On the other hand, Hypno seemed to be rather surprised, and pointed at himself using his fre hand, his eyes slightly enlarged.

"Why not? This way, you can explain that you didn't do this out of malice, and I'm sure they will forgive you just like we did." Brock stated. Looking around, the Rock-type expert could see that most of the children shared his feelings, although some were still understandably wary about Hypno.

Misty wanted to add something. "Better yet, if you'll explain yourself and apologize, I'm sure quite a few people would be willing to be your friends! After all, you're not a bad Pokemon, are you? So... might as well give it a try, right? It could work..."

"_Hypno...?_" the surprised Hypno stated, as if in disbelief that he could make friends so easily after trying so hard without success. But what really convinced Hypno was the fact that Lostelle, after overcoming her initial reluctance, simply stepped forward and extended her hand to Hypno in a gesture of friendship.

"If... if you would like to, Hypno, I could be your first friend!" the pink-haired girl offered. "What you did wasn't nice, but since you're sorry about it... I forgive you! And it's not nice to be lonely, anyway!"

The grateful Psychic-type Pokemon placed his pride aside and tightly hugged the young girl, who hugged him back after a moment of surprise, and as Ash and his friend looked on in approval, most of the other kids began clapping their hands, satisfied that the problem had finally been solved with a good solution for everyone involved. "_Pikachu!_" the electric mouse squeaked, his hands joined behind his head as if saying that, in the end, all is well that ends well.

**oooooooooo**

The return of the group of Pokemon trainers, joined by the retrieved children and the Pokemon that been responsible for the mystery, to the main Kin Island village was greeted with even greater celebration than those Ash and hisfriends had received after defeating the Inferno Angels. Each of the children had returned to their families, and Lostelle had ran straight into her father's arms, giving an happy ending to that tale.

"Daddy!" the little girl exclaimed, hugging her father.

"Lostelle... I'm so glad you're back and you're okay! I was really worried... in fact, everyone was worried, you know?" the mayor said, joy and relief painted on his face. After hugging for a few seconds to celebrate the girl's return, the mayor raised his glance to Ash and his friends and nodded in gratitude. "I hope you have thanked these courageous youngsters! They were the ones who volunteered to search for you and the other children..."

"Hehehee... well, it was nothing all that different from what we usually do!" Dawn affirmed.

"And in any case... I'm here for some personal research, and I sure can't let my favourite rival get all the glory, ya know?" Gary went on, playfully elbowing Ash as he did so... to which Ash answered with an half-smile. "Anyway, it was a pleasure to help you, so... no need to be overly thankful!"

"In any case, you have solved a lot of problems for us, and you brought our children back to us." the mayor stated. "It can very well be said... that the day you've come here was a joyous day for all of Kin Island! Now, there's only one thing I'd like to ask... that is, why is the Pokemon who had kidnapped our children here with you, now? You even seem to trust him, to boot..."

"Oh, him?" Lostelle spoke for everyone. She motioned at Hypno, who was holding back and waiting for that moment with some apprehension, to come closer. "Well, daddy... long story short, we understood what his motives were, and we saw that he didn't really mean to hurt anybody, in the end."

"Hypno has repented for having kidnapped your children, and he promised he won't ever do it again." Misty stated, winking at the hypnotic Pokemon. "I'd say your problems are solved..."

"That's true! Now that we're back, we'll resume our training to become Gym Leaders!" the mayor's daughter answered. She approached Hypno and placed an hand on his shoulder. "And speaking of which, Hypno... I'd be glad if you accepted to be my first Pokemon, since I've always had a liking for the Psychic-types!"

The Hypnosis Pokemon smiled and nodded, and Ash and Pikachu exchanged a knowing look. They still didn't know much about that whole Gym Leaders deal, but they figured the details could wait. For the moment, a mystery had been solved, and they would soon be able to resume their travel through the Sevii Archipelago! "Guess we did our job for today, huh, Pikachu?" Ash asked, winking to his best friend, who answered in kind and gave a thumbs-up.

"Alright then... tomorrow, we're off to the fourth island, Floe Island! And I guess Misty here already has something good to say about that, right?" Brock asked the Water-type expert, whose eyes immediately widened in glee!

"Of course I do!" she practically squealed, her hands joined in front of her, and a dreamy look in her eyes, complete with stars lighting up all around her! "You see... Floe Island is where my idol, Miss Lorelei of the Kanto Elite Four, was born! You remember, ash? That was when we were travelling through the Orange Islands!"

Ash blinked, grit his teeth and looked down in embarassment. Yeah, he remembered that episode all too well... that was when Lorelei had taken him down after he had gotten a big head. It wasn't one of the battles he was proud of, and now that he was more experienced and mature, he asked himself how he could have been that daft at the time...

"You really met one of the Kanto Elite Four?" Dawn asked, curious to know more about that. "And... how did it go, Ash? Did you make a good impression on her? How was she in person?"

"Well..." Ash sweatdropped. "This is... something I'd prefer to talk about later, okay? It... wasn't exactly my most roaring success, if you know what I mean! Hehee..."

"_Pikachu..._" Pikachu squeaked as he rubbed his head... and as the celebrations continued aroun them, the group of Pokemon trainers nd children decided that the time for talk was past, and it was time to just chill out and enjoy the evening as much as they could! "_Pika pi! Pika pika, pikachuuu!_"

"Heh, guess you're right, Pikachu!" Ash answered. "Since we're here... we might as well mke good on our time! Shall we go, everyone?"

"Of course!" Misty answered, and everybody laughed heartilly as even Lostelle and her newfound friend Hypno walked towards the country fair!

**oooooooooo**

"Commander Dimitri... we have brought the new rookie to you, just as you requested."

Safely hidden in his Hoenn HQ, the young Team Vicious commander raised his eyes from the book he was reading as two of his gas-mask-wearing grunts, who were dragging the new recruit along: an extremely reluctant May, who was already wearing a similar outfit, with a tight black uniform, red stripes along her arms and legs, gloves, boots and a mirrored capital R on the chest, along with a gas mask that the girl was now keeping raised, so that her face and a few locks of her brown hair were still visible. Silently, the grunts brought the young coordinator in front of their leader. and then retreated with a polite bow, leaving the two to discuss matter alone. May, for her part, said nothing and remained where she had been left, boiling with rage but unable to do anything about it. She was only waiting for Dimitri to speak up, and the way the young criminal behaved, slowly and metodically putting down his book before drumming with his fingers on the desk, certainly didn't help assuage her tension. The silence was becoming unbearable...

"Alright..." he finally said, after unending seconds. "Very well, I have to say you don't look half bad in this uniform... I kinda think you have found your true calling in life, my dear May!"

"Should I... take this as a compliment?" the girl muttered, thinking that she could at least allow herself a little bit of snark.

Dimitri chuckled, his lips tightly serrated. "Despite everything, my dear May, I can see you haven't lost your fire! Which is good, because now you're a member of Team Vicious, and we won't put up with slackers! If you want your little brother to be safe , you'll do exactly what we order you to. Anyway, if it can be of confort to you, know that with your skill, you'll make for a great commander in no time... one as skilled as you is not meant to remain in the rank and file, after all!"

May just wishes Dimitri would stop beating the bush, and went straight to the point and her first mission, though she could easily imagine she was not going to like it at all...

"Still, let's get down to business." the young criminal said, keeping that irritating air of superiority. "We have three people who could potentially become huge thorns in our side, and that we might have some trouble approaching, considering they're among the best coordinators in Hoenn... much like you, just to give you a term of confrontation!" he chuckkled, pleased with his own joke, before clearing his throat and carrying on. "Anyway, up until now, we were having trouble with coming up with a strong enough team to track them down and fight them on even terms. With you on our side, things will be quite different... therefore, your first mission is to find these people, defeat them in a Pokemon battle, subdue them and bring them to our HQ. We have confirmation that all three of them are in Hoenn now, so you won't have to go far away to track them down. Here they are, I'm sure you know each one of them."

May gasped audibly as she looked at the photos Dimitri had carelessly thrown on his desk: in fact, each one of them depicted someone she knew very well - a boy around her age with light green hair, holding a red rose in his right hand; a rather girly-looking young man in a Cacturne suit, with long and wavy purple hair; and a mature, elegant young woman in her early twenties, with long rose-pink hair. They were, obviously, Drew, Harley and Solidad...

"See? I can tell from your face that you know all of them!" Dimitri chuckled nastily. "I don't think I need to say anything more. You already defeated two of them in your competitions, so they shouldn't give you problems. Admittedly, Solidad could be a little too much for you to handle, which is why, when the time comes, you'll be able to count on the support of some of my best agents. She might be an accomplished trained, but she still won't be able to do much in front of overwhelming numbers. That's about it... you can now start your mission! Oh, and of course, I don't need to remind you not to try anything funny, or your little brother might pay the price! But, it's always good to repeat certain things."

"Max..." May murmured, before raising her eyes and asking a question, driven by her worry. "What did you do with my little brother, huh? What are your plans for him?"

"Nothing, as of now..." Dimitri answered with an uncaring shrug. "He's a promising subject, so we're going to keep him around and train him in order to turn him into one of our top agents! Of course, should he disappoint us, his uses would simply narrow to being a bargaining chip to keep you under control. But you know that all too well now, right?"

"Yes... commander Dimitri..." she answered, almost spitting the last two words. How she wished she could just shank that guy in the face, save Max and be done with it...

"Good." Dimiri said. "And before you even think of asking for help, know that your movements will constantly be controlled through microchips placed in your uniform. Know where you stand, girl."

May noddded and brought herself to do a last, forced saute before walking to the exit, receiving her Pokeballs from a grunt as she was going out. As she was about to reach the exit, the young girl caught a glimpse of Stefan, who was standing in front of a table and was looking at her with an apologetic expression that still failed to convince the young coordinator. May glared back, her eyes expressing all the hurt and betrayal she felt, and Stefan could only look away and murmur something in apology...

"For... for what's worth, May... I apologize to you." he murmured. "I... I couldn't just disobey orders..."

"Yeah... sure..." the young coordinator muttered bitterly, lightly shaking her head. "You couldn't disobey your older brother's orders... so you settled for deceiving and betraying us, in order to make us fall in his hands. Really nice of you, Stefan."

The young trainer was unable to answer back, and simply stare at the floor... and May instantly felt remorse at the way she had behaved. He did seem sincere, after all, after all... maybe he really had no choice, just like she had none at this point... it didn't change the fact that she and Max were in Team Vicious' clutches because of him, but still...

"Stefan..." May finally said, her voice softer. "Look... I'm sorry, I... shouldn't have said that. It was mean on my part. I... guess you had your reasons as well, and we're on the same boat, so to speak..."

Stefan raised his head a little, his demeanor more serene after hearing the girl's words... and, after cracking a small smile, she walked up to him and continued. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. Guess... I was so caught up in my problems that I failed to see yours... maybe, after I'm back from this, we can discuss it in more detail, okay?"

"Thanks, May... and again, I'm sorry..." Stefan answered, as May smiled sadly and walked away, waving her hand. The young member of Team Vicious watched as the girl got away, feeling both relieved and completely useless. The fact that he knew May didn't hate him was of some confort, but at the same time, it hurt not being able to help her. If only he had some more courage and stronger Pokemon... but as it was, he could only wait and hope that everything would turn out for the better...

**oooooooooo**

Max yelped slightly in pain as a Team Vicious grunt uncerimoniously tossed him in a dank, cube-shaped cell , its walls filled with creaks and stains, cut in half by a trail of bars that ran through its middle. The guard quickly closed the door behind Max, and locked him inside as he stood up and grabbed the iron bars in an attempt to at least get an explanation of what was going on. "Hey, what's this about?" Max asked. "What do you want with my sister? Let me out of here! Hey, can you hear me? I'm talking to you!"

The grunt didn't even dignify him with a word, and just glared coldly at him, which made Max realize that, no matter what he did, he was not going to go any further than that. The bespectacled young boy stood in his plae, catching his breath in order to keep his fear in check... but in the situation he was in, in that damp, cold and stinky cell, and without even his Pokemon to make him at least feel somewhat protected, it was hard to do so...

Max sighed in resignation and went to sit in a corner, when a movement on the other side of the cell, beyond the bars cutting it in two, caught his attention, along with a voice he instantly recognized...

"Max? Max, is that really you?"

"Hilde?" Max asked as he ran to the bars. In the darkness, he managed to make out the shape of his friend and rival, her expression still stoic and detached despite the fact that her clothes were dirty and dusty, and her dark red hair were visibly matted. Clearly, she had been in that terrible place for quite a long time, probably a couple days. "Hilde, you're here as well! So, you got captured too..."

"So it seems." Hilde sighed, trying to hide how scared she actually was. "While I was on my way to my next Gym, I was challenged by a guy called Stefan... I defeated him easily enough, but soon after, these guys ambushed and captured me. I found out that Stefan was working for this Team Vicious, and he's the younger brother of this cell's leader, a guy called Dimitri. They offered me a deal - either work for them or be killed. To sum it up, we'll be trained to become Team Vicious grunts."

"Yeah, and as for my sister... they decided to skip the training part and make her work for them!" Max affirmed, knowing all too well that Team Vicious was using him as a bargaining chip. "Darn... if only I had my Pokemon with me, we could hope to run away, but now..."

"Those scoundrels thought of pretty much everything." Hilde thought out loud, dragging her sandals-clad feet on the floor of the cell as she nervously paced around. She wrinkled her nose in disgust as a dust of dirt and dust was raised. "I'm afraid there is nothing anyone can do to help us..."

"Don't say that, I'm sure my sister will think of something!" Max said, trying to hold to a semblance of hope as he grabbed Hilde's shoulder through the bars separating their cells. However, the girl looked unconvinced... she already knew that May's chances were slim at best.

"I envy the trust you put in your sister." she stated, stratching the rusty bars with one of her fingers. "Sadly, I'm not sure it is well-placed. For now, all we can do is behave, do what they say, and hope that it all turns out well."

Max shrugged. "Hoping never killed anybody..." he said, as the two children sat back to back, leaning on the bars. At least, a sorrow shared was a sorrow halved...

**oooooooooo**

"That's good, commander Dimitri. Our new prisoner has been secured and is now being closely watched." a Team Vicious grunt reported to his superior just a few minutes later. "In about two days, we should be able to start training the newcomers."

"Excellent. Nice to know I can rest easy on that." Dimitri smirked. "On the other handd, there is another issue I wish to see adressed: have you managed to capture a few more Psychic Pokemon knowing the move Teleport? HQ has just reported that our Hunter J was forced to use the teleportation feature of her new airship to escape from a difficult situation, back in Sevii Islands... and they need spare batteries, so to speak."

"We have captured several Abra and Ralts, sir, and we should be able to send them to HQ very soon." the grunt answered. "We can rest easy on this too. The situation is fully under our control, and it seems we have also managed to gather another one of the Plates which will see use in the last part of our project. Despite Jakov's earlier failing, we are still at a great advantage."

Dimitri chuckled again at the mention of Jakov's name. That fool was always too soft, even refusing to use the Dark Pokemon their leader so generously gave them! Well, Dimitri was not going to repeat his mistake, and he would surely get the leader's praises before everything was said and done. Better yet, with a little luck, he could even subdue another Legendary Pokemon to Team Vicious' will! He could only imagine how great it would be for him to return with something like Latios, Latias or Jirachi...

He shook his head, forcing himself back to reality. That was no time to wander with his mind, he had to concentrate on the mission at hand and take out those three potential dangers to his organization...

"Very good. Then, proceed as planned." Dimitri coldly ordered. "Very soon, we'll see our new agent in action, and I'm curious to see how she fares. I hope she makes good on her reputation."

**oooooooooo**

In one of Team Rocket's hideouts in the Sevii Archipelago, Ursula was still sitting in her cell, her knees drawn up to her chest, her arms around her legs, and her eyes looking darkly in front of her, immersed in her own thoughts. If someone had looked at her more closely, he would have seen the young coordinator's tough, determined frown, a clear sign that she still hadn't given up on her struggle... she was just biding her time, trying to think her way out of that bind, though things looked rather grim...

She was still busy thinking to herself when she heard a pair of Rocket grunts approaching to give out her meal, and a tall guy with the standard Team Rocket black uniform opened thedoor of her cell slightly and placed a tray with a loaf of bread, an apple and a small bottle of water on it. Which was what passed as her dinner, it seemed.

"Well, what's with the tough attitude, kid? Our cook has outdone himself, today!" one of the grunts chuckled cruelly before closing the door. Ursula, however, refused to be bullied and answered with a barb of her own.

"Haha. How funny. You should've been a comedian." she snarked at him. The grunt grimaced, muttering something about certain people not being able to take a joke, then he walked away, with his colleague right behind. Deciding that skipping a meal wouldn't have done her any good, Ursula went to fetch her tray and bit into her apple, while at the same time perking an ear and listening to the grunts conversing.

"So... Mr. Archer has confirmed that the kid who won the Sinnoh Tournament is about to come?"

"Yeah... and we should be ready to greet them, as they're pretty strong. They even defeated Hunter J, back in Knot Island, and they defeted several members of Team Vicious. We need to be careful."

They got too far for Ursula to hear any more, but for the spiral-haired girl, this was more than enough. The winner of the Sinnoh Tournament? Such a small world... but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"Well, if I play my cards well..." Ursula whispered to herself as she resumed her meal. "I will be able to get out of this stinking hole sooner than I thought. I just hope that guy and hisfriends get here soon..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Well, the real meat of the Sevii saga is about to begin! Next chapter, we will meet some old acquaintances of ours! You'll be surprised, I can guarantee that! In the meanwhile... hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please, send me some reviews, I really like to hear your comments!**

**See you soon!**


	28. Floe Island

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**And... I'm back! I was very pleased to see that my latest chapter received quite a lot of visits in its first hours online already! And it seems that what happened to May and Max already has some people keeping their fingers crossed for them to come out of this unscathed! Yeah, I have to say I put them into a rather nasty situation. Though, I regret to say, I will focus more on Ash and his team's adventures for now... of course, that won't mean I will lose focus on our beloved Hoenn team, it just means you will need to have a little more patience to see what will happen to May and Max!**

**In the meanwhile, our team gets to their next destination, Floe Island, where Lorelei was born! Yeah, I know that means Misty will finally get to see the place where her idol was born... but there won't be much time to reminisce about that, since this chapter marks the place where the story really begins to pick up, and our heroes begin to get some insights into the evil teams' plans! And also the chapter where we get to see a few more of our old acquaintances... so get ready to rock!**

**Yeah, don't have much to say for this chapter... so, let's cut to the chase and get to the meat of the story, shall we? Have fun, and once again, I would be very grateful if you could leave a review! See you soon!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 28 - Floe Island**

Surely, a Dragonite tirelessly soaring over the ocean isn't the sort of things one sees everyday, and the legends that are told from generation to generation in Kanto and Johto have it that such a sight is a good omen...

However, had anyone known the reason why that particular Dragonite was, at that particular moment, flying over the Kanto seas, heading for Sevii Islands with a person many would have immediately recognized mounted on his back, they would have been very worried, and for good reason. Tightly holding to the back of his strongest Pokemon, the Kanto and Johto League Champion Lance was looking towards the horizon, using his ample and elegant cape to shield himself for the wind whipping his face. The young dragon tamer, known and respected worldwide for his courage and for his way of representing the true spirit of a Pokemon trainer, had not predicted he would have to face such a journey, and in a place that had never seemed to be that interesting, at least if one was to speak of the Pokemon living there. But he himself had to admit that what had happened in the Sevii Islands as of late was very worrying. Only a few days before, Moltres, the Legendary Bird of Fire, had been awakened for his slumber in the bowels of Mt. Ember, and had subsequently disappeared after having been engaged in battle by a couple of powerful Charizard. All had turned out for the best, but there was still much reason to be wary: whoever had dared disturb the sleep of the mighty Pokemon was bound to try again in the future, and Lance already had a creeping suspicion that, were it to be confirmed true, would have meant that the Sevii Islands were in great danger.

As if this was not enough, he also knew he had to keep an eye on several criminal activities going on there. A few days ago, a ship going from Sinnoh to Kanto had been hijacked to the Sevii Islands by a group of people whose description matched that of Team Rocket agents, and several passengers had been taken hostage by the organization. Among them was a girl called Ursula, the daughter of a rich Sinnoh family, and a contestant in the latest Sinnoh Grand Festival. At first, Lance had thought that this was rather strange - Team Rocket had been laying low for quite some time, to the point that some had even forgotten about it outright. But it seemed that Giovanni, the leader of the organization, was simply reorganizing his group and waiting for the right moment to strike. Several informants of his had been acting incognito in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh, so that Giovanni could have exhaustive knowledge of the situation before moving out. And now, Team Rocket was ready to reap the fruit of their leader's long-sightedness.

"Are you alright, Dragonite?" Lance asked his champion, knowing that they had been flying or several hours now, and no matter how resistant they were, even Dragon-type Pokemon had their limits. However, Dragonite did not appear to be tired, and simply nodded his head, emitting a melodic call that sounded like a far-away song. Lance nodded, holding even tighter to his dragon friend's back. "Alright then... we'll soon be reaching Floe Island, and we'll rendezvous with Lorelei there. It was only fair that I allowed her to take part in this, as this is her native island after all..."

The kind-hearted dragon smiled and emitted his musical call once again, as he soared over the turbulent sea...

**oooooooooo**

"Hooray! Here we are in Floe Island! I was just waiting for it!" Ash exclaimed joyously, stretching as he treaded his first steps upon the sand of Floe Island's beach, the hot sunbeating on his back and arms. Pikachu had already raced ahead, running on the beach and then hopping on one paw as if playing a children's game. He stopped for a second, just enough time to call for Ash and his friends with his shrill squeaks. "_Pika pi, pikachu pi! Pikachu pika chuuu!_"

"Hehehee... hold on a sec, Pikachu, we're coming!" Misty answered happily as she walked behind him. Floe Island did not look as quiet and silent as Kin Island was when they had first arrived, but it seemed even more immersed in nature, with small pine woods sprouting here and there, a tall rocky hill towering over the mainland, and a beach of fine white sand extending itself for kilometers around the island. The town, a few hundred meters away from the beach, looked simple and down-to-earth, and many houses looked more like small huts or bungalows. A farm, surrounded by what looked like swarms of Flying-type Pokemon, was visible near the town, but aside from this, it looked like your run-of-the-mill town, and it was a little strange to imagine that, behind its unassuming appearence, lied the place where one of the Elite Four was born...

Not that this made Misty any less enthusiastic, as the girl joyfully looked around herself. "Hehehee... wow, guys, I can't believe it! It's like a dream to me, I get to see the place where the great Lorelei was born! Had it not been for this sudden emergency, I'd never have gotten this chance!"

Somehow, Psyduck felt like he had been called, and popped out of his Pokeball, appearing on the sand-encrusted planks of the harbor before Misty, whose good spirits took a punge!

"_Psy-ay-ayyyy?_"

"Ugh... I was not talking about you!" the redheaded Gym Leader muttered, a vein comically popping out of her forehead!

"Well, where have I seen that one before?" Brock joked as the rest of the team reached Ash, Pikachu, Misty and Psyduck. "By the way... I would like to warn you not to drop your guard just because we stopped those Team Vicious guys once. They will be back, sooner or later, and I have no idea what they will try to do."

"Do you think those criminals might be interested in other Pokemon living around here?" Dawn asked, holding her Piplup, who looked just as happy as Pikachu to have come to their new destination, despite the heat.

"We can't rule this out." Gary answered in the Rock-type trainer's place. "After all, we have no idea whether other Legendary Pokemon are hiding around here, and whether those guys know something we don't. But I'm pretty sure we'll hear from them again."

"Now, now, Gary, don't be such a spoilsport!" Ash replied. "I know we're here on a rather important mission, but nothing says we can't enjoy our time here while we're at it, right?"

"_Pika pikachu!_" Pikachu replied, eager to see thecity just as much as his human friends were. The group gathered together once again, as they began making their way to the city and asking themselves what was in store for them...

**oooooooooo**

"Hmmm... so, you're travellers coming from Kanto, huh?" a wizened fisherman asked Ash and his friends, who had stopped to ask for some informations. He tilted the straw hat he was wearing on his head, revealing a tan complexion and a pair of still lively dark eyes. "Well, there are quite a few interesting things around here, even though this little town of ours doesn't enjoy the hi-tech commodities of nowadays' big cities! For instance... you see that little house on the other side of the block? Well, that's where Lorelei, our local heroine, was born! It's pretty much a local attraction!

Ash and Pikachu were about to turn that way... but they were caught off guard when Misty dashed in the same direction, with the noise of a Formula One car getting revved up! Everyone sweatdropped when Misty began pacing around the house like an over-excited Pachirisu, admiring every single feature in what seemed to be a very normal house... had it not been for the fact that its walls were decorated with a wave motif, and several Water Pokemon, chief among them a Lapras, had been drawn upon them. It didn't really need a huge stretch of the imagination to understand the rest, and Ash and his team quickly reached Misty, who was still fawning like a fangirl around Lorelei's house, surrounded by a nimbus of golden stars!

"Eeeee! Will you look at that! It's fantastic! I can't believe this, I'm looking at my idol's house!" the redhead squealed, her eyes almost bugging out in excitement! She seemed to be oblivious to the external world... "Hmmm... and why is this Lapras her? Why this Pokemon and not... say, a Dewgong?"

"Lapras is a really important Pokemon for miss Lorelei..." the old fisherman explained. "After all, that was the first Pokemon she ever befriended, back when she was a little girl. Yeah, that was when she ventures into the Ice Cave and got lost! It's a mystical place encased in solid ice, deep in the bowels of that small mountain over there!" With that said, the old man pointed to the rocky hill just a little beyond the city borders.

Dawn blinked in wonder. "A cavern where the ice never melts? How is that possible, since we're very close to the Equator?" she asked.

The wizened man smiled slightly, having expected such a question. "That's just what many around here have wondered. A group of explorers was once sent in there in order to shed some light on this mistery, and well... apparently, after a fair bit of researches, they discovered that a strange artifact, which they nicknamed the Nevermeltice, was responsible for lowering the temperature of the environment and the water inside the cave to freezing levels. They dared not remove it from its place, for fear that doing so would cause the ice to melt, with potentially terrible consequences for the environment. Anyway, as I was saying... rumor has it that miss Lorelei once wandered too deep inside the Ice Cave as a child, and got lost inside of it. A Lapras living in the waters deep underneath helped her find her way out, and they've been the best of friends ever since. They've been travelling together for so many years that I've lost count..."

"It's a bit of a shame I haven't had a chance to see that Lapras in action, back when I met Lorelei..." Ash murmured to himself.

"However, things have taken a turn for the worse, as of recent days..." the old man continued on, his attitude sobering a little, his fingers stroking his short white beard. "The Ice Cave has become the hideout of a criminal group called Team Rocket, that are using it as a base of operations, taking advantage of the fact that few people have ever had the courage of exploring those freezing tunnels. I have no idea what their plan is... but I do know that this is just one of the bases they have got here in Sevii Islands! They've gotten more of them, on Quest, Fortune and Chrono Islands... and it seems that the organization recently acquired some powerful new executives, who are directing the operations."

"What? Team Rocket?" Brock exclaimed, rather surprised by the news. Not that he had forgotten how the criminal syndacate consisted of far more than just the comical Jessie and James, but they had not acted out in quite a long time. And now, they were coming back in full force... which was not good news at all, considering what had happened with Mewtwo and Celebi! After all, the Iron Masked Marauder was a former member of the organization... "We really didn't needthis... we already had quite a few problems to think about, but now I'm afraid things might have gotten out of control..."

"You already had to deal with Team Rocket, kids?" the elderly fisherman asked. "I have to say, I'm quite impressed... it is not easy to just walk away so easily after having to deal with them... I also heard that they recently began to kidnap strong trainers and force them to work for their crime syndacate, but I don't know how much of that is true..."

The news had taken a bit of a toll on everyone's good spirits, and now they just couldn't walk away pretending nothing had happened, knowing that such a menace was so close. However, their guide suggested that this was not the moment to fret over something they couldn't do much about, and they should think of finding a place where they could rest and eat something. "Well, kids... I think the best thing to do, for now, would be to rest up a little... and in any case, even if you have already had some experiences with those people, you really should not involve yourselves in Team Rocket's business... you ought to let the police and the Pokemon League deal with this."

"I guess so..." Gary answered. "And in any case, we're not exactly in the ideal conditions to fight a battle with Team Rocket, considering we've just arrived here... I think we ought to stop and get some rest as well..."

"_Pikachu..._" the electric mouse squeaked, rubbing his stomach in hunger. And Ash certainly couldn't blame him...

"Well, I guess you're right... okay, guys, let's just stop somewhere and have something to eat." the young Sinnoh champion proposed. "We'll think of what to do later on... though, if you ask me, we should at least take a look at what's going on in the Ice Cave."

"I couldn't agree more, Ash..." Misty answered. Sometimes, Ash's temerity could annoy her, when it went into recklessness territory, but she also thought it was one of his best qualities - never expect Ash Ketchum to back down when there was a challenge to deal with, and this was one of the things she always respected of him...

"I agree as well... though I'm afraid it won't end so simply..." Dawn sighed. "Mister... we are thankful for you lending us a hand, it wa very kind of you!"

"No problem, kids, it's all in a day's work for me!" the old man answered. "Now, just promise me you'll be careful, and you won't try to bite off more than you can chew! See you soon, kids, and hope you will like your stay in Floe Island!"

"We have no doubts about that, mister! See you soon!" Brock said as the team waved goodbye to the old man, then started searching for a place where to eat something. The islander watched them walk away, hoping to himself that those kids knew what they were up against should they decide to oppose Team Rocket and their plans...

**oooooooooo**

In the huge and elegant mansion belonging to the organization's boss, Giovanni was looking at several images flashing on a computer screen in front of him, a dark scowl on his hard face. Images of Floe Island were being shown on his window... all images that the micro-camera Domino had placed on Ash was recording and transmitting back to him. So, it seemed those meddling kids were going to throw some mud in his plans once again... for some sort of ironic twist of fate, after not having to deal with them for so much time, they popped out again to make trouble for him, and for his most ambitious project. It was a good idea to immediately take precautions, and luckily, he knew just who to ask in such cases...

"Hmm... alright then, I guess the kid gloves have to be off for this one." he toldhimself, before pressing a red button on his left side, contacting other members of Team Rocket. "Giovanni here. I need to speak with the director of personnel, right away."

"_Yes, sir... speaking!_" a woman''s voice on the other side answered. "_How can we be of assistance to you?_"

"I need to know whether Attila and Hun have been assigned to the Sevii Islands team, under Archer's leadership." Giovanni answered. "I might soon find myself needing their aid to get rid of some annoyances."

"_Hold on a second, sir, I'll check it out..._" the woman answered. Giovanni nodded and stood in wait as the secretary began flipping through her documents... and the answer to his question came even earlier than he anticipated! "_Yes, sir... I just found the register! I can confirm that Attila and Hun are in Floe Island as we speak. Do you wish for me to contact them now and give them a message from you?_"

"I do." Giovanni nodded. "We are finding ourselves facing an unexpected, and possibly troublesome, problem, and I need to be able to count on them, as they are among the most reliable of my agents."

"_Right away, Giovanni, sir..._" the woman concluded. "_I will contact the Floe Island base soon, and give them instructions to move out as soon as they are ready._"

"See to it that the trainers that just arrived in Floe Island be removed as soon as possible." Giovanni continued. "I will send you the necessary data via my computer, but most of them are old acquaintaces of our organization. It shouldn't be difficult to locate them, especially since I had Domino put a detector on one of them. I expect a good job from Attila and Hun, so warn them not to disappoint me."

"_Of course, sir. Trust on us._" the woman answered before the communication ended, and Giovanni turned to his PC screen, where a blinking icon was warning him of an incoming message from Domino. It was certainly news concerning the situation in Sevii Islands, so it had to be urgent news, and the mob leader quickly opened the message and read it. His confident attitude darkened as he got the bad news - it appeared that a few of Kanto' Elite Four had already mobilized in reaction to the alarming news coming from that place. He had ignored the intervention of Phoebe, that Elite Four member from Hoenn, since she obviously did not know about Team Rocket's involvement in the matter... but the same could not be said about the two that, according to his best undercover agent, were on their way to Sevii Archipelago.

"And one of those is also native to Floe Island, so it's also personal for her... tch, just what we didn't need." the Team Rocket boss muttered to himself. "Even with my new executives, Attila and Hun on the place... we certainly can't compare with trainers the likes of Lance and Lorelei. Alright, then, let's try to salvage what we can. If my men could just bring me what we're searching for, a partial success would still be a step forward for us. Alright, let's see about this..."

With that, Giovanni immediately got to his PC and began writing, hoping to himself that he was still on time to salvage the situation...

**oooooooooo**

"So, guys, what do you think of that? It seems to me Pikachu and our Pokemon are quite enjoying the local food!" Ash said, smiling widely as he looked at Pikachu and the other Pokemon stuff their faces with what looked like seafood-flavored ramen, gulping down huge masses of noodles at the time! The small restaurant Ash and his friends had stopped by was a rather down-to-earth place, but it still had a jolly atmosphere about it, where it was possible to taste specialities of Johto cuisine while sitting at low tables in ilex wood. Of course, all the trainers were grateful to Brock for having chosen the best place to stop at, and Pokemon like Charizard and Dawn's Mamoswine were showing to be very appreciative of local cuisine, at least judging by the whole lot of empty dishes stacked beside them!

"_Pikachu!_" Pikachu squeaked, flashing a thumbs-up sign to his trainer. "_Pika pi, pikachu pika pi!_"

Misty sucked a few noodles from her chopsticks and chewed slowly, trying to enjoy the flavor as much as she could. "Hmm, this is real seaside cuisine!" the young Gym Leader commented. "You really chose the right place, Brock!"

Dawn clicked her chopsticks together and winked, before munching on a piece of roasted eel. "Yeah... I do think the Sevii Islands should make themselves known a bit more, they're a great place to spend a quiet vacation in! Especially since there's going to be a new Pokemon League here... it should gather quite a few interested fans!"

"That's what I'm hoping..." Gary said, before recalling the more urgent issue. "Anyway, everyone... let's focus on the matter at hand for now, which is, of course, Team Rocket. In any event, we need to make sure they don't cause any more trouble to this island."

Pikachu, having finished his cup of fish-flavored ramen, climbed up on the table, standing near Ash in order to listen more carefully to what Gary had to say. And Dawn's Buneary, recognizing a good chance to stay close to Pikachu, did the same and got close to the electric mouse!

"_Buneary!_" the cute bunny Pokemon said, cuddling close to the amazed yellow mouse and ignoring the involuntary discharges of static energy coming from his short fur. Both Ash and Dawn chuckled at the funny scene, and at Pikachu's slight embarassment, before concentrating on the current situation, and on the map of Floe Island that Brock was holding on the table in front of them. "Alright, guys... you got any idea of what we could do? I don't think we have many ways of getting inside the Ice Cave... do we even know where to enter from, just for starters?"

"Well, we could get an idea of what to do from here..." Brock stated, keeping his voice low so that the other clients could not hear him. "There are some winding roads around the rocky hill that should take us close enough to the Team Rocket headquarters without them noticing. However, I suspect Team Rocket might have taken precautions about that, so we need to be careful even in that case..."

"And now that I think of it, Jessie, James and Meowth have been strangely misssing lately..." Ash mused aloud. "And if I know them as well as I think, it's not because they have given up... we'd better be on our guard!" He interrupted himself and looked around in wonder as he noticed Misty, Dawn and Gary looking at him as if he had said that Magikarp was the strongest Pokemon ever! "Huh? Well, what's the matter? Can't one say that we should be careful, since we're in a rather difficult situation?"

"Sheesh, I sure must have missed quite a lot!" Misty stated. "I seem to remember that the Ash Ketchum I travelled with when we were kids would have simply charged head on, and to heck with the consequences!"

"Well, he wasn't that much better when he was with me!" Dawn stated ironically. "I'm glad to see all those experiences taught him some self-preservation instinct!"

"_PIKA PIKA!_" Pikachu spoke in defense of his trainer. "_Pika pi, Pikachu! Pika pikachu pika pikachu!_"

"Well, Pikachu does have a point..." Brock answered, rubbing his temple with a slight smile. "Anyway, Ash is right when he says that we need to be careful. You do remember what that old fisherman told us, right? He said that Team Rocket has begun capturing trainers and forcing them to work for us. They might have hostages here, and if this is true, we need to be careful not to involve them..."

"You're right..." Misty stated. "Well, for starters, I think we should..."

A deafening blast interrupted the red-haired Gym Leader the moment something huge and incredibly heavy violently slammed on the inn's wall, toppling tables and chairs, and causing several customers to go sprawling on the ground! With a brief frightened yell, Dawn turned in that direction... and she saw that a part of the wall had crumbled, and two ominous-looking figures were standing among the dust kicked up... when they saw that the newcomers were wearing the trademark Team Rocket uniforms, Ash and Pikachu were expecting them to break out in triumphant laughter and start declaiming their ever-present motto, when he saw that something was definitely out of place: one of them, in fact, was a large and well-built man that looked nothing like the lithe James. More to the point, they did not waste time with introductions or ridiculous mottos and immediately got down to business!

"Sorry for interrupting your meal." the smaller figure, clearly a woman, said in a cold voice as she stood near a colossal Steelix. "But we know for certain that Ash Ketchum and his friends are here."

"We've come to take them. Nobody bugs us, nobody gets hurt! Is that a deal for ya?" the large man said in an ironic, almost mocking, voice which sharply contrasted with his colleague's. Fluttering in the air beside him, standing by for orders, was a ferocious-looking Skarmory. The dust was wiped away a few moments later, allowing Ash and his friends to see who they were dealing with: the large man was blond, with spiky hair and a somewhat tan complexion, wearing blue-tinted sunglasses, while the woman had long silver hair, pale skin and sported a cold yet self-assured countenance. It was clear as day that they were much more dangerous than the Team Rocket Ash and his friends were used to...

"Who... who are those guys?" Dawn wondered out loud as she looked somewhat fearfully at the newcomers. The man with the Skarmory took notice immediately of the blue-haired pre-teen that had spoken, and immediately saw that the group she was a part of also had a Pikachu and a Buneary, just as his superiors had told him!

"Well, what do you know!" he exclaimed. "The little fishies are falling in the net all by themselves! So, kids, I take it you're the rugrats that made fools out of Team Vicious back in Knot Island, huh? You sure know how to set up the fireworks, don't ya?"

"You are to come with us without objections." the woman cut the discussion short, not in the mood for her partner's attempts at being funny. "Should you refuse, we will be forced to use violent means."

"Oh, really? Well, sorry about that, but we're not going to hand ourselves over to people like you!" Ash fired back hotly, with Pikachu already standing by his side.

The blond man chuckled sinisterly. "Y'see, kids, when my partner here said we would have used force, she didn't mean to say she was going to use it on you..." he stated, as the customers began dispersing in fear. With a sudden lunge, that many would have thought impossible of such an heavy creature, his Steelix extended his tail and grabbed a pair of boys, who had been too slow in getting away, in its metal coils, wrapping their arms in a lethal embrace! The ill-fated boys shouted in fear and tried to wriggle free, but the metal serpent's strength was far beyond that of any human, and they couldn't hope to get away. "We're going to reiterate our question. So, do you plan on coming with us, or we have to use force to convince you? Decide fast, ladies and gentlemen, this is a limited offer!"

"Darn..." Gary muttered, stepping away as he tried to grab his Arcanine's Pokeball. Sadly, there was not much they could do without risking the hostages' lives. "You're from Team Rocket, huh? What are you doing on this island, and what are your plans?"

"We're not to answer that. We are the ones asking the questions here." the woman answered. "So, what will it be? Yes or no?"

Ash angrily grit his teeth, not knowing what to do. Pikachu lit up his cheek pouches as Misty, Dawn, Gary and Brock all tried to grab their Pokeballs. They knew they had to attack swiftly in order to free the hostages from Steelix's grab, but they weren't sure when to make their attempt.

"This is bad... yes or no..." Misty murmured to herself. This would have gone on for who knows how long, had something unexpected come to the kids' help inthe form of a sudden and powerful Bubblebeam attack that came from behind Steelix and hit the Steel/Ground type in the back of his head, causing him to roar in pain as some joints rusted in place. He relinquished his hold on the two boys, who were able to wriggle free and run away as Steelix was recovering, while the tw Team Rocket agents were only able to gape in amazement! Ash and his friend turned that way as well, just in time for a powerful Psychic attack, in the form of a glowing pink sphere of energy, to hit Skarmory and throw him against the wall of the inn! The steely raptor shrieked and thrashed, and somehow managed to keep aloft, but the advantage of surprise was gone, and now the two criminals were facing another opponent, one who seemed to be a lot more of a match for them: a beautiful woman of no more than thirty years of age, with long and shiny fucsia hair, and shining looking glasses, her expression severe and as cold as ice! She was wearing a red short-sleeved shirt that showed off her forms well enough, a violet high-cut skirt and black high-heeled shoes... and as she walked to the two Team Rocket members, several inhabitants of the small island were looking at her in wonder and relief, as if a local heroine had just come to chase away the evldoers! The truth wasn't all that far off, of course...

"Hey, hold on a sec..." the blond guy grunted, his previous bravado replaced with uncertainty and wariness...

"You are..." the woman murmured, stopping before completing her sentence, as if saying that the rest was obvious. Misty was the first to look in that direction, and her eyes widened in amazement when she recognized her idol!

Lorelei, one of Kanto's Elite Four, had just arrived, and she seemed ready to personally deal with the two evildoers! A Dewgong and a Slowbro were accompanying her, ready to attack again in case the Team Rocket agents tried something funny.

"Oh, dear, I can't believe it!" Misty exclaimed in giddiness, sparks and hearts floating all around her! "Guys, now this is what I call a lucky break! We're going to witness the great Lorelei in action!"

Ash sweatdropped comically. "I see that your admiration towards her hasn't waned after all this time, Mist..."

The Elite Four member stopped some distance away from the two Team Rocket members and looked at them with icy calm, hands on her hips. "Hm. Attila and Hun, agents working for Team Rocket. Your infamy precedes you even here in the Sevii Islands. I'm sorry, but I cannot allow you to cause problems to my countrymen. Therefore, I need to ask that you kindly remove yourselves from here. Refuse, and I will be forced to use less pleasant methods." she stated, with such convinction that even the two criminals looked somewhat awed by it. After all, they both knew they were no match for an Elite Four...

"Tch... well, that's a surprise, the heroine has come to save these brats..." Attila growled caustically. "Well, Hun, I'm afraid we're out of the picture with this!"

"I agree." the woman admitted bitterly. "We cannot stand up to an Elite Four member by ourselves. Alright, we'll retreat for this once... but we won't let it end that easily! Abra, Teleport!"

Hun opened a Pokeball she had, and let out the small Psychic-type Pokemon, who immediately concentrated and caused Attila, Hun, their Pokemon and himself to vanish in a small display of light. Lorelei was dazzled for a split second by the flash, and sighed in disappointment - she had hoped to apprehend those scoundrels in order to question them, but that option had just flown out of the window. Well, no matter... what really was important was the fact that Attila and Hun had not managed to capture those kids...

She had little time to dwell on that though, as her fellow citizens immediately began applauding and congratulating her in loud voices, praising her intervention!

"Yahooo! You were great, Lorelei!"

"Just as expected from our local heroine!"

"Serves those scoundrels right!"

"Oh, dear..." Lorelei tried to hold off thecrowd with a modest smile. "Now, now, everyone... I just did wat needed to be done! By the way, about the kids that those brutes were threatening... where are they? Are they alright? There are no injured, right?"

"Yes... yes, miss Lorelei, they're alright! Even thanks to your intervention! And luckily, nobody got hurt in this!" a woman answered, pointing to the group of teenagers (and one pre-teen) that had been the Team Rocket agents' targets, and then to the two boys that had been captured by Hun's Steelix. "Thank you very much..."

"Miss Lorelei! I never thought we would meet again this way!" the enthusiastic voice of a teenaged boy exclimed, as the owner of said voice approached Lorelei. The Kanto Elite four recognized a few of the teens present in that group, but she was sure she had never seen the older teen with the dark skin and the perpetually-closed eyes, the boy with the messy reddish hair, or the blue-haired pre-teen with the white beret and the Buneary by her side.

"You were outstanding, miss Lorelei!" Misty exclaimed, her hands together and several pink hearts flying from all around her! "Your Dewgong and Slowbro were magnificent, really! They chased away those two... I always said you were the best!"

"Er... okay, Misty, we already knew that you were a huge fan of hers..." Dawn commented with a nervous giggle. "But don't you think you're going a little too far?"

Lorelei, who had seemed ice-cold and frigid while standing up to Attila and Hun, immediately turned to a warmer tone, smiling kindly to the trainers. "My, this is a surprise indeed. I never thought I would see you again in such an occasion, and I can see you've brought some new friends with you as well." she greeted, while looking carefully at each member of the team. "Well, I'm very honored you've come visit my birthplace, though I wish we were able to meet under more favourable circumstances... huh?"

Brock, seemingly forgetting that he and his friends had been about to be kidnapped, approached Lorelei with a gentlemanly demeanor, holding her hand and talking in a warm, charming voice! "There is no need to apologize, kind lady..." he affirmed, looking straight in her eyes in his latest attempt to impress a girl! "On the contrary, I count myself lucky for being able to share such an happening with you. I would be very grateful if you'd honor me..."

*FLAAAASH!*

"_Croagunk!_"

*STAB!*

"AAAAARGH!" Brock screamed, dropping to the ground in a daze as soon as Croagunk popped out of his Pokeball and Poison Jabbed him in the buttocks! Soon after, Misty went to retrieve the ladykiller-wannabe, dragging him away by the ear!

"I apologize for my friend as well, miss Lorelei!" Misty said, showing her best commercial smile! "It's an habit of his, whenever he sees a pretty girl that's not me... but Croagunk and I can handle this! Thanks for the help, Croagunk..."

"_Croa!_" the toad Pokemon gave a thumbs-up, never losing that toothy smile of his.

Lorelei blinked twice in surprise, then cleared her voice and resumed speaking. "A-hem... I see that! As I was saying... it's a pleasant surprise to see you again! I still remember when we met in Mandarin Island... though I see there are some new faces around here."

"That's true... it's a little long to explain, but we've come here to try and discovered what's going on with some strange recent happenings. First off, we've had weird weather in Knot Island and in the oceans between Hoenn and Sinnoh... and we are afraid there's something sinister behind all of this! We're not sure what it is exactly, but..." Ash answered. "By the way, that's my friend Gary, and he's from Pallet Town just like me... the guy with the Croagunk is Brock, an old friend of mine from Pewter City... and finally Dawn, a friend of mine from Sinnoh!"

"We're honored to meet you, miss Lorelei." Gary greeted with a small bow. Brock lifted an arm, even though he was completely stiff from the Poison Jab, and murmured what could reasonably sound like a greeting!

"I'm very honored as well, miss Lorelei!" Dawn answered gently.

Lorelei nodded to all of them. "The pleasure is all mine, everybody! Yes, I heard about these strange phenomena as well, and I know for certain that the Hoenn Pokemon League had already sent one of their own Elite Four to do some investigations." she answered. "Anyway, the Kanto Pokemon League is mobilitizing as well. At the moment, we're keeping an eye out for Team Rocket, who we know has estabilished some operating bases in this island, as well as Chrono, Fortune and Quest Islands. And it's not just about kidnapping trainers... I heard that they're also trying to get their hands on a particularly powerful Pokemon resting in Quest Island, though we are still unclear on its identity. We think both Team Rocket and the other organization, Team Vicious, have their eyes set on that Pokemon, for motives that, while still nebulous, surely can't be anything good."

"Then, it's even worse than we thought..." Gary murmured. "We have to try and stop them before they can find this Pokemon..."

"_Pika pikachu! Pikachu pika chuu..._" Pikachu affirmed.

Lorelei nodded with a small sigh. "You're right about that... but if you really wish to help me taking on Team Rocket, I'd suggest you come with me. I'm nt the only one who has decided to move, as this is a matter that concerns pretty much everyone... both in the Kanto League, and in the League that's soon to be founded in the sevii Archipelago."

"Yeah, we heard about that..." Ash mused. "They've sent some of their trainers as well, I take it..."

"Yeah, and one of the soon-to-be Gym Leaders noticed your fighting prowess back at Knot Island..." Lorelei went on as she began guiding the group through the streets. "Just follow me, and I'll introduce you to a couple of trainers that have accepted to help us stop those criminals... and you'll also get a chance to meet an old friend of yours!"

The young Elite Four winked at Ash and his friends, who asked themselves what exactly did she mean by that... but they did not ask further, and began following her to the place she was speaking of, followed by the encouragement of several Floe Island inhabitants...

**oooooooooo**

"And that concludes our report, commander Ariana." Attila stated, standing on attention in front of Archer and the only female among Team Rocket's new executives. "Lorelei, one of Kanto's Elite Four, is on this island, and it won't be long before she comes to ruin our operations. If we are to keep this operation intact, we need to immediately evacuate the hideout and give up the NeverMeltIce. None of us are a match for a member of the Elite Four."

"I have no doubt about that, Attila." Ariana answered, thoughtfully rubbing at her chin. "It was most unfortunate that our operation has been discovered so early. And yet, I think it's still too early to speak of abandoning the plan. A recent report from our other hideouts in Sevii has informed me that our operators are getting close to the other targets we are searching for... and if we do things right, we might kill two Pidgey with one stone. Lorelei and the other Elite Four members might be too tough for us to defeat in a straight-up Pokemon battle... but nobody ever said we have to face them this way, if you know what I mean."

Attila frowned uncertainly, while Archer smirked nastily and nodded in approval, having rightly guessed what his underling was trying to say. "Of course... that's a great idea, Ariana! Since Lorelei likes Ice-type Pokemon so much, we'll make sure she stays with them... for the rest of time! Truly a fitting end for an Ice master... Attila, Hun! You two take your positions, we have to be ready to meet with Lorelei and the other intruders as soon as they arrive!"

"Yes, sir!" the two criminals answered at the same time. They still weren't sure what their leader had in mind, but it wasn't their nature to discuss an order, and Archer was competent enough to have earned their respect.

"In the meantime, we'll begin evacuation, and we'll take as many hostages with us as we can." Ariana went on. "This unprecedented event will cause a few annoyances, but it shouldn't be able to damage our plans beyond a certain extent! We'll immediately begin the operations... time is of the essence here!"

"Yes, ma'am... and what about those two fools and their talking Meowth?" Hun asked, more out of curiosity than because she actually cared.

Archer shrugged. "As they say, you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, and those three weren't exactly valuable pawns. We'll use them to entertain our guests... we just need them to buy us some time, so we can escape safely. We'll get rid of quite a few annoyances this way."

"Good." Ariana said, clearly satisfied with that. "I like it when annoyances are dealt with swiftly. I just hope we don't find ourselves facing more of those. You two can go. Leave the rest to us."

Attila and Hun saluted and walked away, towards the section where the hostages' cells were located...

**oooooooooo**

"Alright, guys, we're almost there!" Lorelei said as she guided her guests through a small maze of narrow roads, until they reached a small plaza right behind a Pokemon Center. Ah, Pikachu and their friends, however, were left quite puzzled when they discovered that it was a dead end, and began asking themselves just what did the Elite Four member have in mind, and where she was taking them.

"Hmmm... with all due respect, miss Lorelei, I'm not sure I'm really convinced." the young Sinnoh champion commented. "I mean, this doesn't seem it's going anywhere... are you sure you haven't gotten lost?"

"What on Earth do you think you're saying, Ash?" a rather annoyed Misty repriminded him. "Could you please learn to turn your brain on before opening that mouth of yours? Miss Lorelei was born on this island, of course she knows where to go!"

"Well, excuse me for asking where on Earth we're going, Misty!" Ash replied, somewhat bitterly. He had forgotten how stingy Misty could be whenever she started acting as if she knew better, and she hadn't lost that part of her personality in the three years they hadn't seen each other!

Pikachu, feeling himself develop an headache that would make Psyduck proud, shook his head and called the two squabbling teens back to attention by making his cheek pouches crackle. "_Pika pi, pikachu pi!_" the electric mouse squeaked.

Luckily, as they heard Pikachu's voice, Ash and Misty immediately stopped and looked at each other in embarassment. "Er... you're right, Pikachu... and sorry, Ash, I shouldn't have snapped at you now that there are more important things to worry about. So, miss Lorelei... where is this place you've used to gather together?" the red-headed Gym Leader asked.

"_Pika..._" Pikachu sighed, happy about having averted a pointless squabble that could have drawn some unwanted attention on them. Then, the Electric-type Pokemon turned to the wall Lorelei had approached, as there was something that didn't really convince him about that. "_Pika pika pikachu?_"

Lorelei smiled kindly. "Well, this is kind of a secret. We of the Kanto Pokemon League have organized this just in case there were problems like the one we're facing now." she affirmed as she placed her delicate hand on a stone tile, in the crude stones of the wall. "You're among the few I will trust with this secret."

"Secret? What's this all..." Dawn started to say before Lorelei pushed a seemingly invisible tile on the wall. With a dull sound of stone scraping on stone, a rectangular section of the wall immediately began sliding sideways, revealing a ramp of stairs going downwards, in the underground tunnels of Floe Island, to the surprised eyes of the team! The blue-haired girl widened her eyes in surprise when Lorelei stepped aside and motioned for them to enter!

"Please, be my guests!" she said, with the same seraphic calm she would have used to invite them to having a tea in her living room! "It might not be the greatest of accomodations, but it's a good start for the planning of our... let's say, counterattack! Come on, follow me!"

Lorelei began descending the stairs, motioning for the young trainers to follow her... and one at the time, the members of Ash's group followed her in the dank, uncomfortably warm corridor, completely empty except for a few lamps hanging off the walls. Pikachu and Piplup held close to their respective trainers, being as careful as they could . They could hear the sound of the stone wall sliding back in position before the passageway closed behind them... and after a short yet disconforting walk down the stairs, the team reached a large wooden door in a stone wall right in front of the stairway. Lorelei approached the door and knocked twice, then once, and finally twice again... and the large door opened with a creaking sound, allowing the team to enter!

"That was just a... code, let's put it like that, for identification." Lorelei told her teenaged friends. "Now... I shall introduce you to the current members of our anti-Rocket group! Though I think you already know one of them."

"Well, you're back on time, Lorelei!" A male voice, that Ash, Misty and Brock knew for sure they had already heard, with a confident yet kind tone to it, greeted the ice mistress. "So, have you managed to find our young friends?"

"Of course I did, Lance!" she answered, adjusting her glasses as her eyes got accustomized to the different lighting. As Ash and his friends entered the large room, most of them remained flabbergasted when they saw just who had spoken earlier... it was none other than Lance the Dragon Trainer, the strongest trainer in all of Kanto and Johto, standing near a large rectangular table, next to two trainers Ash and his friends had never seen before! Ash, Misty and Brock had already met the Kanto and Johto Champion during a trip to the Lake of Rage, in the midst of their Johto journey, and he had helped them calming down an enraged Shiny Gyarados and blow a Team Rocket plot to kingdom come... and not only that, Ash and Brock had met the legendary trainer once again during the deciding battle against Team Magma and Team Aqua, when Groudon and Kyogre were about to be awakened!

"Lance!" Misty exclaimed as the team entered the room and looked around. Just then, the two unknown trainers sitting at the table stood up - a boy and a girl, the former dressed like a professional biker, with a red suit decorated with orange flames, and a 15 drawn on his chest and back, scarlet gloves and white boots, and wearing a yellow helmet on the back of which a rising sun could be seen drawn. His face was half-hidden, but his confident, sky-blue eyes were still visible, and Ash could see, as he came a little closer, that he had what looked like a lightning tattooed on his cheekbone. In other words, he seemed like a passionate and fiery individual, which was further compound by the vivacious Arcanine that was following him, and that was now standing at attention, wagging his bushy tail!

The girl, on the other hand, was a dark-looking beauty, a few years older than Ash, with an elegant Gothic Lolita dressing style: she was dressed almost completely in black, with some white highlights on her skirt, and her pure white socks sharply contrasted with her black shoes. Even her long, smooth hair was black, highlighting the red ribbon decorating it, while her eyes were dark and piercing, with a rather pale complexion that looked out of place for someone who lived near the Equator. She, too, had a Pokemon already out - a proud-looking Mightyena, with pitch-black fur and a sharp gaze.

"Hmm... I have to say, I never thought I'd meet the ones who have defeated Moltres a few days ago so soon." the girl said, looking at Ash and his friends as she petted her Mightyena. "I have to say, I was quite impressed with your performance back then."

"This coming from you, Miyu... it means a lot, huh?" the biker answered as he took his helmet off, revealing long, almost shiny blond hair that cascaded until halfway across his back - he was a really handsome person, enough to leave Misty and Dawn amazed for a few seconds! "Hehehee... to elaborate, my friend Miyu, here, isn't exactly generous when it comes to complimenting people! Guess it comes with the territory of being an aspiring Dark-type Gym Leader... it's not quite like training the fierce and passionate Fire-types, right, Arcanine?"

"_NINE!_" the canine Pokemon barked, his fur emitting flames for just a second.

Lance chuckled politely, before clearing his throat and greeting the group of young trainers. "Well, Ash... looks like our ways cross again!" he affirmed. "Of course, I would have rather met you again under more favourable circumstances, but that's just the way it is... anyway, I'm glad to have met you again, and to see that there are some new people with you. I suppose you must be Gary Oak... Professor Oak's grandson, right?" he asked, referring to the young researcher.

"That's me..." Gary politely answered. "I have heard a lot about you and your skill, Lance, and I am lad to make your acquaintance as well."

"As for me... my name is Dawn, and I come from Sinnoh!" the blue-haired girl introduced herself, holding her Piplup in her arms. "And... this is my partner, Piplup! We're very glad to see you too... and we hope to be of some help as well!"

"_Piplup! Piplup!_" the cocky penguin Pokemon chirped in response.

"Oh, right, I have heard of you as well... after all, I did follow the Sinnoh Grand Festival myself." the Dragon-type expert answered. "Still... welcome to all of you! The ones you see with me and m colleague Lorelei are two of the future Gym Leaders of the upcoming Sevii League, currently waiting for official registration. Miyu, Dark-type expert, and Homura, Fire-type expert."

"Charmed!" the blond guy named Homura introduced himself.

"Honored to meet you as well." Miyu greeted with a small nod. "So the rumours about your prowess weren't exaggerated, Ash Ketchum. You really are as strong as I heard, for taking on Moltres and come out in one piece."

"Er... thanks, I guess!" Ash thanked, secretly feeling proud of having been recognized for his successes for once. After all, most new trainers he met tended to remember him for competitions he had lost... "But how do you know about me and my friends meeting Moltres?"

Miyu smiled slightly. "My Mightyena, Night Sky, and I were there when it happened. We were investigating those Team Vicious guys, and we happened to be present when Moltres broke free of Mt. Ember. We were going to come and help too, but when we got close, you and your friends had already defeated that beast... and we were boh amazed at that, right, Night Sky?"

"_Might!_" the Mightyena barked.

"I see... that aside, I guess you already know the reason why we organized all of this. It's all in order to chase Team Rocket away from this island, and the Sevii Island in general." Lorelei explained. "We already know that they have found themselves an hideout in the Ice Cave, deep inside this island's bowels. What we need to do now is get inside their base, free the hostages and keep Team Rocket from stealing the NeverMeltIce, the artifact that keeps the cave at freezing temperatures."

"We have no idea what Team Rocket wants to do with it... but if they do manage to steal it, the ice would soon melt because of the high temperatures, and this island's ecosystem would be greatly damaged." Lance added. "We already have worked out a way to reach their hideout, but until now we didn't have the numbers needed to pull off anattack, at least not until you came here. He sighed, looking at Ash and his friends... and the black-haired trainer sighed himself and smiled. After all, he thought, wherever he went, trouble found its way to him, and he would have helped out anyway.

"Of course I will help!" he said, glancing at his friends and receiving approving nods from all of them. "So, Lance... what do you propose we do?"

The dragon tamer scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Admittedly, my plan isn't completely foolproof, but in the end, I think it's also the most convenient one." he affirmed. "You should know that..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: With this chapter, several well-known characters reenter the scene: Lorelei, Lance, Attila, Hun (from the Legend of Thunder episodes)... and of course, my two OC trainers, Miyu and Homura! Anyone noticed how there is a total absence of Dark-type Gym Leaders, even in Generation V games? We have Karen of Johto's Elite Four, but other than her... nope, I got nothing.**

**You've already glimpsed at Miyu and her star Pokemon, the Mightyena Night Sky, in the Knot Island chapters, and I hope she will be an interesting character! About time someone recognized Ash's successes as well, huh? If only the writers weren't insisting that Ash is a weak trainer who only lucks out from time to time...**

**Okay, I'm rambling. Shutting up now... and I hope you've enjoyed this chapter! See you soon, everyone!**


	29. Sneaking Up On Two Fronts

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! I've tried to get back to this story as soon as I could...**

**It seems my story has received quite a lot of reviews since my latest update... and for that, I have to thank my new reviewer AshK, who has taken pains to give a comment to every single chapter I ever put up! I thank him for his comments, and I will make sure to read and leave a comment to some of his stories as soon as I have a chance to do that! Still, I have to thank even all the other reviewers who encourage me and criticize my mistakes! Thanks, all of you, it's really great that you are supporting me so much!**

**As we've seen, Team Rocket has taken up residence in Floe Island... and it seems that Ash and his friends are now targets for the evil organization! Luckily, they have found help in none else than Lance and Lorelei, two among the best trainer ever to grace the Kanto Pokemon League... and two trainers who will soon be part of the upcoming Sevii League. Looks like Team Rocket will have a much harder time than they might think... of course, that doesn't mean that Team Rocket and their main executive, Archer, won't have taken some countermeasures to make sure their operations don't get derailed! A race against time has started to either save or take the NeverMeltIce, and a lot is riding on the outcome of this race!**

**Who will get first prize (and before you ask, no, there's no prize for runners-up)? Hopefully this chapter will hold a few answers...**

**Enjoy!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 29 - Sneaking Up On Two Fronts **

A few hours had passed since Lorelei had guided Ash and his travelling comrades to the secret hideout where she, along with Lance and two promising Sevii League trainers, had been planning a counterattack on Team Rocket, in order to drive the evil organization away from Floe Island and throwsome mud in their plans. After carefully considering the options they had available, the team was trying to approach the Team Rocket hideout in the Ice Cave: they had split in two groups, which coincidentally consisted of men on one side, and girls on the other, and were nearing the hideout from two directions, hoping to take Team Rocket by surprise in a pincer-like approach. Hopefully that would have thrown Team Rocket into brief disarray, making things easier for them. In theory, having such trainers as Lance and Lorelei on their side meant that they mostly had nothing to worry about... but the risks were always present, and it was not like an Elite Four couldn't be swarmed anyway - especially when factoring that Team Rocket likely had the terrain advantage. Extreme care had to be taken for that attack...

At that particular moment, the team composed of Ash, Brock, Gary, Lance and Homura was making their way up the hilltop, towards the entrance of the Team Rocket hideout, keeping their Pokemon inside their Pokeballs in order to be as stealthy as possible. Like Lance had suggested, Team Rocket and their executives already knew that they were going to have some unwelcome visitors, but they had no idea when or how they would have shown up, so surprise was still on their side.

"Okay, we have met nobody at the moment..." the Kanto and Johto Champion affirmed after giving a glance beyond a steep rocky cliff. In fact, it seemed that their enemies had not even thought about leaving a few guards, which was very suspicious. "It's almost as if Team Rocket actually wanted us to enter that cave..."

"So we can fall into a trap, right? That's what you mean, isn't it, Lance?" Brock asked. The dragon tamer nodded, confirming that Brock had just guessed what was going through his mind.

"They want us to enter their hideout, so they can trap us inside and take us out without much trouble. Not a bad idea on their part..." Homura murmured, trying to keep hidden so that his bright red biker outfit wouldn't give him away. "Well, not that I really care. If it's a trap, we can just go there and smash it! It all sounds quite simple to me."

Lance shook his head. "I seewhat you mean, Homura, but we cannot just let our first impulse govern our actions." he answered. "We have to act carefully, as we have no idea what Team Rocket might have in store for us. Ash, Pikachu... can you see anything from where you're standing?"

The champion turned to the young trainer and his faithful electric mouse, who were standing a little farther away... Ash was standing near a tall wild olive tree that had grown near a rocky cliff, while Pikachu had climbed up the tree's think branches in order to have a vintage point from which to get a good look at the situation. After hearing Lance's voice, the electric mouse dropped down from the branches with an agile jump, landing in his trainer's arms, and pointed to the top of the cliff, with a gesture of his right forepaw. "_Pikachu! Pika pikaa, pichu pikachu!_" he squeaked, trying to convey the fact that it was something important.

Ash nodded, understanding what his friend was trying to say. "Hmmm... yeah, Pikachu, I see what you mean... looks like Team Rocket did place a few guards up there, and they look like they're quite dangerous." he said, warning his friends. "There are at least four of them, we can't face them without alerting all of their comrades as well."

Gary rubbed at his chin, trying to think of a solution to the problem at hand. "Hmmm... I think we're better off avoiding a direct confrontation. Should we manage to get inside the Ice Cave without having the guards see us, we could still take Team Rocket by surprise... and I think we have just the Pokemon we need!" he said, smiling cunningly at the end. As Ash was wondering what exactly his old friend and rival meant by that, Gary opened a few Pokeballs and let a few Pokemon out - his Umbreon, his Electivire and his Nidoking. The other members of the team were rather surprised as well: Umbreon was certainly a stealthy and elusive Pokemon, but the same could not be said for the others...

"Hmm... surely well-trained Pokemon." Homura commented, after taking a good look at Gary's Pokemon. "But... I need to ask you this question: they don't seem like very stealthy Pokemon. Weren't we going to avoid battles?"

Gary smiled cunningly. "Exactly. And that's exactly what I wanted to do, avoid fighting. Let me show you how." he said, before whispering something in the ears of all of his Pokemon. His three champions listened patiently, then nodded in unison and moved directly under the cliff upon which the Team Rocket sentries were standing. Ash and Pikachu stood watching, as Umbreon, Electivire and Nidoking began climbing their way up the sheer rocky wall, finally reaching the top and remaining just a little below the border. There were four or five guards, all wearing the standard black Team Rocket uniform, complete with beret and bright red R on the chest. Lance was right - a fight would have surely alerted all the other Team Rocket members in the base, and as long as they could attack by remaining in a relatively safe place, it was worth a try...

Taking care not to let anyone notice them, Umbreon and Electivire moved along the border of the cliff, and as soon as they were in position, they jumped up, using the moves Gary had instructed them to! Umbreon's large eyes lit up, and a multicolored sphere of light shot out from them and struck the Team Rocket grunts, while Electivire's twin tails touched the ground and sent out a powerful electric shock on two more guards! One of them was hit by Umbreon's Confuse Ray and, after jumping up in surprise, he started to look around himself in a daze... while two more were hit by Electivire's Thunder Wave and became stiff like statues, with comically pained expressions painted on their faces, before dropping helplessly to the ground! Before the remaining sentry could react, Nidoking jumped up from the edge of the cliff and landed in front of the guard... then, he grabbed the Team Rocket member and put a clawed hand on his mouth, preventing him from shouting, and at the same time showing off his cruelly sharpened claws. Understanding his situation, the grunt wisely decided to remain quiet and allowed Nidoking to bind him into powerlessness. Seeing that things were under control for now, Umbreon motioned to Electivire and climbed his way down the cliff, before motioning to the humans that everything was okay.

"Very good." Lance commented with a nod. "It seems we're at an advantage for now... for now, let's ask those gentlemen a few questions. Hopefully, the girls are handling themselves well enough."

**oooooooooo**

Misty, Dawn, Miyu and Lorelei were taking care not to make even the slightest noise as they entered the rocky tunnels that, starting for an opening in the base of the rocky hill, was climbing its way through Floe Island's underground. Even though the Ice Cave was still nowhere to be seen, the temperature had dropped considerably, and while Lorelei and Piplup seemed to have no problem with the cold, and Miyu was not showing any sign of disturbance, the same could not be said for Misty and Dawn, who were trying to hold back the shivers. Sure, neither girl could imagine she would've had problems with the cold in a tropical island...

"Phew..." Dawn murmured, keeping her voice low. There was an awful echo, inside those caves... "They sure picked a nice place for their hideout... now, where do you think we're going to end up?" She could hear the sound of rushing water, not toofar away, and she understood that they weren't too far from the sea. It was probably only a few dozen feet away... but before she could think any further, Dawn was forced to hold back her Piplup, who was about to rush headlong into danger!

"_Pip! Piplup!_" the penguin Pokemon chirped when his blue-haired trainer held him, placing an hand on his head. Dawn placed a finger on her mouth, kindly asking hr Pokemon not to be impulsive.

"Sssh... please, Piplup, don't rush headlong..." she told him. "We have to get as close as possible, before attacking those guys..."

The penguin Pokemon readily nodded, though he seemed a bit peeved about not being able to attack as freely as he wanted... and soon after, the team entered what looked like a large cave, huge enough to allow a gigantic cruise ship inside... which was in fact the case!

"Miss Lorelei, isn't that a cruise ship?" Misty said in amazement, as the team came out of hiding: in front of them stood a huge, luxurious cruise ship that looked like the famous S.S. Anne, on which Misty had been travelling at the beginning of her Pokemon journey... which included a spectacular shipwreck! It was simply incredible that such a large ship could fit into that cave... yet, thanks to some state-of-art work of architecture, not only was it there, but there was a black submarine moored there as well! Lorelei frowned. So it was true, after all...

"I can't believe this..." Miyu said, as her Mightyena squatted down on all fours and growled aggressively. There was no doubt about it... that must have been the S.S. Catherine, the ship that had been hijacked by Team Rocket a few days before.

With a terribly serious and cold expression on her face, the typical expression she wore during a Pokemon battle, Lorelei nodded. "Yes, that's just it... the cruise ship Team Rocket had hijacked before I came back to Floe Island." she said. "Those criminals hav kidnapped many trainers from Sinnoh, and I can bet they want to force them to work for Team Rocket. We need to stop them beforetheir plan comes to an head..."

Night Sky, Miyu's Mightyena, turned around and let out a disquieting call similar to a laugh, calling for the girls' attention. There were a few Team Rocket grunts, weapons in hand, were trying to force a few hostages to climb onboard the submarine...

"Hm? Are they taking those prisoners away?" Dawn asked herself. "So, they are trying to evacuate this base right now?"

"That's strange,since I don't think they've found the NeverMeltIce just yet. We'd have seen it clearly if they had..." Lorelei said. "I guess our arrival is forcing them to hightail it out of here before they had anticipated. Well, it would be good news for us... but those people certainly would not agree!"

"What do we do? I think we should help them... after all, we're close enough, now!" Misty said, reaching for her Pokeballs. Lorelei looked at her... and nodded silently.

"Attack, now!" Lorelei answered, tossing her Pokeball and letting out a beautiful azure-skinned, grey-shelled Lapras that placed herself right in front of the submarine, emitting a melodic call! The Rocket grunts and the hostages backed away in fear... and soon after, all the other girls sent their Pokemon out!

"Let's go, then!" Misty exclaimed. "Misty calls... Starmie and Horsea!"

"Our turn now, Piplup!" Dawn said in turn. "We will need your help as well, Pachirisu!"

Miyu snapped her fingers, causing Night Sky to "laugh" out loud once again, and let another Pokemon out. "Let's do our thing... Night Sky and Houndoom!" she said, tossing her Pokeball and making a huge Dobermann-like Pokemon, with a pointed tail and ram-like horns on his head, pop out! Soon enough, all the Pokemon had formed a wall between Team Rocket and the escape vehicle... and their enemies, after recovering from their surprise, let out their fighters as well. There were quite a few familiar faces in the Pokemon lineup, like Raticate, Golbat, Koffing, Kadabra, Gloom and several other common Pokemon! The Rocket grunts, on the other hand, were trying to force the prisoners on board the escape submarine...

"We need to stop those people from escaping, and save the captured trainers!" Misty exclaimed. "Horsea, Starmie... try to stop that submarine!"

As Lorelei's Lapras, flanked by Dawn and Miyu's Pokemon, stood ready for battle and began simply blowing her way through the Team Rocket ranks, the elite Four took out another Pokeball. "I think they'll need some help to stop that steel contraption... come out, Slowbro! We'll need your Psychic powers for this!". As she said this, the vacant-eyed Water / Psychic Pokemon appeared in front of her and turned to the submarine, where several hostages were being hurriedly loaded as the Pokemon battle was raging.

"Thank you, miss Lorelei!" Misty thanked. "And now... Horsea! Stop those guys with Bubblebeam! And you, Starmie... use Psychic on that submarine!"

"You too, Slowbro." Lorelei ordered.

The giant starfish and the clumsy Psychic-type concentrated hard... and the huge Team Rocket submarine, a black torpedo-shaped vehicle with a capital red R drawn on its front was surrounded in a blue aura and lifted clean off the water, leaving the Team Rocket agents flabbergasted as it was placed on the ground as if it weighed nothing! The hostages were stunned as well, as the battle among Pokemon went on...

A Golbat used a combination of Double Team and its natural speed to dart around Miyu's Mightyena, making it look like there were more than one of them... but the grey hyena and her trainer were not impressed, as they had already faced such a trick before...

"Night Sky, use Odor Sleuth to locate Golbat... and strike back with Ice Fang!" the gothic lolita ordered. Night Sky sniffed the air around her for a second... and just as Golbat swooped down to strike her with a Wing Attack, the hyena jumped back, located the real Golbat with her acute sense of smell, and ferociously bit into his wing, sending a wave of freezing energy in his body! The giant bat screeched in pain and fell down, covered in ice crystals! Miyu's Houndoom breathed a Flamethrower on the nearest opponents, standing up on his hind legs. Several opponents were hit and knocked out, their bodies covered in soot and their eyes swirly!

"Nicely done, miss Miyu!" Dawn exclaimed, whose Piplup and Pachirisu were doing a pretty good job as well in thinning Team Rocket's ranks. With a spectacular Drill Peck, the penguin Pokemon dropped a Doduo, and the electrical squirrel was quick to use his Discharge attack to take down a threatening Dustox that was about to cover him in toxic powder. The battle was going well for the girls, mostly thanks to the Elite Four helping them, and Team Rocket fleeing in the face of such odds...

"Don't worry, we've got this covered!" Lorelei said, reassuring the hostages that had not moved much from the submarine, while still getting as far as they could from the Rocket grunts. All the hostages were understandably frightened, but the fact that the girls were at an advantage, and the local heroine was part of the rescue team boosted their confidence...

However, Lorelei knew all too well that, even if the battle was going their way for now, the rest of Team Rocket was obviously going to mobilize and get ready for battle. Who knew what kind of trap they were going to face later on...

"_We seem to be doing well enough for now..._" Misty thought to herself. For a second, the girl jumped up in fear as she saw a Team Rocket Octillery emerging from the briny waters and charge towards her Horsea, but the seahorse Pokemon countered with a good Smokescreen attack, squirting a blot of black ink on the octopus' face! Octillery stumbled and flailed his tentacles in the air in frustration, trying to get rid of the inky substance before Horsea could attack again. "_I just hope Ash and the others are doing okay... we've had the surprise factor on our side, but it's not going to last much longer..._"

**oooooooooo**

Which was all too true - the alert had quickly spread through the Team Rocket hideout, and the organization's new executives had made haste in evacuating their prison cells and transferring their hostages on their submarines, while most of the grunts stood ready on defense... and just then, in the block Ursula was in, confusion reigned supreme as the guards forced the prisoners to evacuate.

"Quick, get out of here! Those meddling fools will not wait for you to do as you please!" a tall and burly grunt shouted at his annoyingly slow companions. "Be quick, you slugs! You too, girly! Stand up and come with us, quickly!"

The man had just then turned to Ursula's cell noticing, much to his annoyance, that the rich heiress was lying on the ground, on her knees and doubled over, her hands pressed on her belly as if she was feeling sick. She was facing the wall, and while her face couldn't be seen, it was clear that she was shaking and lamenting in pain. Not that the guard really cared about that, as far as he was concerned the girl was simply another hostage and potential grunt that they couldn't give up.

"So? You heard me, girlie? We have no time to waste on you!" the muscleman roared in anger. Much to his frustration, Ursula remained on the ground, on her knees and clutching her stomach.

"U... Uuugh..." she murmured in a pained voice. "Hurts... it hurts... I... I can't even... stand..."

The guardian grunted and threw the door open, before reaching the young girl and trying to force her out of there. "Hey, kid, this ain't no hotel! When I say you get out, you get out!" he growled as he roughly seized the girl by her wrist in order to force her to stand...

And that was when Ursula acted, pushed by her anger and her will to survive. She clenched her left fist and, with all the strength she could muster, she punched the brute in-between his legs, hitting a very vulnerable spot! While the difference in physical strength was overwhelming, it mattered nothing in that case, and the huge grunt widened his eyes and screamed in agony, dropping to his knees and clutching the injured spot with both hands! As fast as lightning, Ursula took advantage of the situation to steal the man's keys, get out of her cell, and lock her jailer inside. Then, taking advantage of the ruckus, she started running at top speed away from the Rocket grunts, frantically looking for the place where her Pokemon might have been held. Immediately, the girl heard the voices of the Rocket grunts hot on her trail, but didn't let this intimidate her, and continued running for all she was worth, trying to at least distance them...

**oooooooooo**

A booming sound reverberated on the walls of the tunnel the boys were in, and the echo of the noises from the battle reached their ears, as alarmed voices came from the deepest caves of the rocky hill. There was no doubt that the girls had been forced into battle, and the whole hideout was reacting to the intruders!

Which meant Ash and his friends were soon to follow... Ash and Brock looked at each other and nodded, as Pikachu jumped down from his trainer's shoulder and stood ready, and Brock let two of his Pokemon out. "Graveler, Rhyhorn! Your turn now!" the dark-skinned boy exclaimed, throwing both spheres. The animated rock and the scarred stone-skinned rhinoceros popped up and stood ready, with Graveler raising his mighty fists in the air, and Rhyhorn scratching at the ground with his left forepaw, in preparation for a charge!

"Rhyhorn?" Ash asked in curiosity.

"I thought it would be a good idea to let him train a little..." Brock answered. "I wish I could have trained him myself a little more beforehand, but still..."

"Well then... guess I'd better do my part as well!" Homura commented almost off-handedly, before smiling cockily and letting out one of his strongest fighters! "Alright... come out, Camerupt! We'll show these people just who they're messing with when they take on the future Sevii Gym Leaders!"

Another Pokeball flew high, letting out a huge camel-like Pokemon, about seven feet in length, with a fiery red fur, blue rings on both his sides, and whose lumps were actually miniature volcanoes from which rivulets of red-hot lava were flowing. He let out a call similar to an elk's, sticking his tongue out and stamping the ground with one of his hooves. "_CAMEEEEERUPT!_"

Lance nodded as he saw that Homura's Camerupt really looked strong and determined... and as Gary prepared to fight as well, letting his Blastoise out, the Kanto and Johto champion decided he might as well lend them a hand. "Alright then... I think you will do for now... spread your wings, Altaria!"

With an elegant wave of his arm, which caused his mantle to flap majestically behind him, Lance tossed one of his Pokeballs and let out a beautiful winged Pokemon, covered in wooly white feathers that made him look like a cloud with a long neck, a pair of antennae on his head, white cheek pouches and a short silver-tipped beak. His skin, as well as his paws and his fan-like tail, were an azure color all over. It was clearly an Altaria, the evolved form of a Swablu. It was not the first time that Ash saw such a Pokemon, in fact he had fought a few during his travels in Hoenn, and there was one in Nando's team as well.

All the Pokemon were ready in front of their trainers... which was just in time, since several Team Rocket members popped up from the depths of the cavern, joined by their Pokemon! A tough-looking Tauros was at the head of the attackers, under the guidance of a particularly warlike grunt.

"Heh, here are the other outsiders! So much the worse for you, then! You will regret trying to mess up our operations! Tauros, take them out with a nice Zen Headbutt!" he exclaimed. The bull-like Pokemon let out a frightening mooing sound and whipped himself with his many tails to psyche himself up, then he charged towards the intruders, his head surrounded with what looked like a glowing azure-green energy shield. Pikachu charged up his cheeks and stood ready to unleash a Thunderbolt attack, but Homura's Camerupt took him by surprise and lowered his head, ready to charge as well!

"Hold on a sec, kiddo!" the biker exclaimed jovially. "With your permission, my Camerupt and I will take care of this nice little bull! Come on, Camerupt, use a good Take Down on that Tauros! Let's see whose head is harder!"

Camerupt mooed again and charged head-on towards the attacking Tauros... and the two Pokemon clashed against each other, with a deafening blow that made the walls shake and forced the other Pokemon to stand back! The screen of psychic energy that surrounded Tauros' head was shattered in a shower of greenish sparks, and the huge bull let out a surprised roar as Camerupt, ignoring the strength of the awesome blow, dragged his opponent back and backed him up against the wall! Tauros writhed and freed himself, making another attempt to attack, but Camerupt didn't give him the chance to do so...

"And now, Camerupt... use Lava Plume!" his trainer exclaimed. The miniature volcanoes that formed the camel Pokemon's lumps started boiling, and a thick, boiling, lava-like fluid erupted from them, hitting Tauros head-on! The bull-like Pokemon mooed again, and fell t the ground, losing consciousness soon after, just as Homura winked and scratched his nose, as if to say that was no big deal. Ash, Brock and Gary, for their part, couldn't help but be impressed at the strength displayed by Homura's Pokemon...

"You see that? This is what happens when someone angers my Camerupt!" Homura said with a cocksure smile. "Excellent job, my friend!"

The Fire-type camel turned to his trainer and called out in satisfaction, but more enemy Pokemon stepped forward, intent on avenging their defeated comrade. Gary's Blastoise had something to say about that, though, and he quickly raised his eyes and pointed his cannons against them, while Graveler, Rhyhorn and Altaria stood at his sides...

"You little... how dare you?" another Rocket grunt muttered as his companion, both humiliated and embarassed, recalled his defeated Tauros. "You won't get away with it! You still haven't seen what our Pokemon can do!"

More Pokemon, mainly of Poison and Normal types stepped forward and angrily charged Ash's team, in an attempt to overwhelm them with sheer numbers! Brock's Graveler stopped a Nidorino in his tracks, grabbing the opponent's venomous horn and pushed him away, before striking back with an effective Magnitude attack, his fists striking the ground beneath Nidorino and causing him to be hit by the shockwaves! Rhyhorn charged a Pinsir, hitting the large bug with a Horn Attack, and then with a Stomp. However, the huge beetle-like Pokemon was made of sterner stuff that this, and attempted to hold the ferocious rocky rhino in a Seismic Toss, lifting him clean off the ground!

"Rhyhorn, use Protect!" Brock called out to his new Pokemon. The Ground / Rock Pokemon grit his teeth and struggled with all of his might against Pinsir's hold, managing to force his opponent to drop him. Before Pinsir could recover and attempt a new attack, Rhyhorn dashed forward and slammed him into the wal with another powerful Horn Attack!

"Nicely done, Brock! Your Rhyhorn sure is something!" Ash exclaimed before turning back to the battle... which, in fact, was already turning out to be in their favour! Pikachu seemed to treat it as nothing more than a warm-up, in fact... none of his opponents could even come close to him, and his Thunderbolt, Volt Tackle and Iron Tail attacks dropped enemies faster than one could count! The same went for Lance's Altaria and Gary's Blastoise, who were thinning down Team Rocket's ranks with shocking ease...

**oooooooooo**

"Executive Archer! Those intruders are far too strong for us!" a Rocket grunt wheezed as he reached the office where Archer and his three direct underlings were reunited. Attila and Hun were there as well, and with them there were also Jessie, James and Meowth, who seemed eager to keep their distance from the blond muscleman and the icy-eyed woman. Something about them scared the more remissive Team Rocket members... and the fact that Hun seemed to look at them like they were insects to be crushed certainly did not help!

All Team Rocket members turned to the grunt, and while the situation seemed to be dire indeed, Archer kept his aloof, detached expression. "What is going on, in the upper floors?" he asked, as if saying that the answer to that should have been obvious. "We are hearing quite a ruckus from here, and we know we're dealing with tough opponents... but we still have an edge on them. So, tell me... have you managed to transfer our hostages to Chrono, Fortune and Quest Islands?"

"That... that we did, master Archer... we managed to get most of them away... but Lorelei and the female trainers that have joined her have stopped the last submarine, and that Sinnoh GF finalist managed to get away in a moment of confusion! We are trying to recapture her as we speak..."

Jessie frowned. A Grand Festival finalist was among the captured ones? She already had a hunch on who that could be...

"What do you mean? That rich brat actually managed to get away?" Petrel shouted in incredulity. "You bunch of fools, she's too important an hostage to lose! Try to recapture her at all costs, now!"

"That will be enough, Petrel." Archer stopped him, appearing rather unconcerned about the unexpected event. "We can do without that Ursula girl, after all... The thing that's more important now is not to lose our mission objective. You know what I'm talking about, right?"

"Er..." the grunt murmured, as Petrel covered his mouth in a mix of anger and embarassment, while James and Jessie looked at each other in puzzlement, as they were not informed about Team Rocket's true aim in the Ice Cave. "No, master Archer, we haven't lost track of it! We're trying to divide the intruders and push them towards the inner parts of the Ice Cave as we speak!"

"Good, that will be an effective trap." Archer answered. "Attila, Hun! Jessie, James! Your duty will be to take out the boy and his companions. Jessie and James, in particular... I expect you to face the boy yourselves, as you seem to have more... experience, so to speak... in fighting him. As for Attila and Hun, we'll make sure Lorelei and Lance cannot interfere, so you should have no problem picking off the other kids."

"Very nice, boss!" Attila smirked cruelly, slamming his fist on his palm. "You'll see how I will be working up those kids!"

"Get a grip, Attila. We are not here to have fun, you know that better than I do. So try not to do foolish things, and concentrate on our mission." Hun repriminded him... though Attila seemed to just shrug that off with a mocking laugh.

"Hahahaaa! Of course, ma'am, orders are orders!" he joked. Hun wrinkled her nose, but decided not to say anything... while James cast a fearful look at the two more hardened criminals, as if fearing that they could turn on them and attack them at any given moment!

"Okay, the strategy is set, then!" Ariana said, casting a meaningful glance at Attila and Hun, who nodded in understanding. "We'll take care of dividing the intruders and make sure Lance and Lorelei cannot help the kids... you'll take care of that Ash Ketchum boy and his little friends! We're counting on you!"

"Of course, ma'am! Leave it all to us!" Jessie enthusiastically said, thinking that the time had finally come for her and James to shine... and without knowing the true reason why Ariana was counting on her...

**oooooooooo**

"Well, it wasn't exactly hard to reach this place..." Misty affirmed as she and the other girls stepped into a large room that looked like a gigantic, empty hangar. Team Rocket seemed to have already evacuated most of the headquarters, and the girls had met no noteworthy resistance as of then, even though the temperature was dropping more and more as they got closer and closer to the main rooms. "I hope the boys have been as lucky as we were... girls, miss Lorelei, what's the situation there?"

"Everything under control for now." Lorelei answered after casting a quick glance behind herself. "We have directed the hostages to the exits and we allowed them to get out of this place. But I'm afraid those hostages were only a part of them! The others have already been taken away by Team Rocket..."

The Elite Four member motioned for Miyu and Dawn to stay close, just in case, then reached her greatest fan in the larger room. "Anyway, I'm sure even Lance and the guys, up there, have met with problems. I heard some battle noises up there as well... and if I know him as well as I think, Lance has not been soft on those criminals."

"I almost feel sorry for them..." Dawn commented with a nervous giggle. Miyu once again checked behind herself, then got close to the rest of the team as well. "Well, now we have to decide where to go next and... Huh?"

Miyu raised a hand, as if telling Dawn to listen up, and pointed to one of the side corridors, from which the sound of rapid running steps was coming! Someone was running away... and the blue-haired girl was not going to be surprised if it was someone desperately trying to get away from Team Rocket. After some surprise, Lorelei and the younger trainers stood ready with their Pokeballs... and a few instants later, a lithe figure with a pretty whitish-azure dress and peach-colored hair, done in a pair of drill-like pigtails, ran into the room, frantically looking around herself in search of an exit. She started running again soon after, in order to get away from a quarter of Rocket grunts hot on her trail, and from their three Pokemon - three Ariados, colorful giant spiders that were trying to catch the young girl - about twelve or so, by the looks of her - with their sticky strands of web. The largest of the Ariados shot his web, which the girl luckily managed to dodge... but it was clear she was not going to keep this up much longer!

"That girl is in trouble!" Misty stated, before wincing in disgust as she saw the Ariados. Her ever-present fear of Bug Pokemon was still bothering her... "Ugh... and those Team Rocket agents have some really poor taste in Pokemon! Ariados... I couldn't imagine a worse Pokemon!"

"We still need to help her..." Dawn began saying, getting ready to throw a Pokeball. She stopped for a second as she recognized, much to her surprise, that the girl running away from Team Rocket was none other than Ursula... then shuted a warning to her! "Ursula! Please get away, now! We'll take care of this!"

The rich girl turned to Dawn, and was very surprised herself to see her greatest rival appearing in front of her... but she did as Dawn had said, and dashed away just as the other girls sent out some of their Pokemon! The small Mantyke Misty had befriended earlier on popped out, smiling and using her fins to float in midair... and Togekiss and Houndoom appeared soon after, ready for action!

"What?" a Team Rocket grunt exclaimed as the Ariados stopped in their tracks. "Where do these girls come from?"

"Houndoom... you know what to do." Miyu said lacinically. The gigantic helldog effortlessly shrugged off a Web attack that was supposed to hold him in place, then closed his eyes and shot a powerful Dark Pulse attack, hitting all three opponents and sending them to the ground! The Ariados stood up soon, but only to find themselves attacked by the other Pokemon...

"Your turn, Mantyke... Wing Attack!" Misty told the small manta ray, who quickly did a midair flip and dived down towards an Ariados, striking the giant spider with her large wing-like flipper. The Bug / Poison type took the hit, but quickly retaliated with a Psybeam that sent Mantyke airborne for a short distance. The manta ray shielded herself, but was only able to fend off the worst of the hit, remaining stunned and confused for a few seconds... just as Togekiss was going in to attack!

"Stop that winged furball, Ariados!" one of the grunts exclaimed. "Use a Psychic attack now!"

"Togekiss, strike back with air Slash!" Dawn quickly countered. The giant spider was surrounded by an azure aura, before firing a powerful pulse of psychic energy, but Dawn's Normal / Flying type managed to dodge sideways and was only grazed by theattack. Then, Togekiss dropped down and slashed her opponent with the edge of her short wings, sending the Ariados to the ground in a shower of miniature stars! Just then, Mantyke and Houndoom unleashed a double attack on the enemy - the small manta ray used her Water Pulse attack, blowing a huge bubble in the closest Ariados' face, while Houndoom attacked theother one, his fangs wreathed in the crimson flames of a Fire Fang attack! Houndoom's jaws clamped shut on the last Ariados, before picking him up and tossing it away... and the other one was hit head-on by Mantyke's Water Pulse and was left stunned and confused. Needless to say, the Team Rocket agents were quite shocked at the ease with which their enemies were defeating them... and the sight of Lorelei, her glasses shining and her face ice-cold, was more than enough to convince them to run for it!

"I would advise for you to leave, gentlemen." she stated icily. "This girl will be coming with us now. Should you have something against that, I'll be glad to hear about it."

"Er..." one of the thugs stammered in fear. "W-well... after all, I guess that kid wasn't that important a prisoner anyway! And... master Archer and the others can easily take you down anyway! You can have the kid, we're outta here! Let's scram, gus!"

"No need to say that!" one of his companions answered. All the grunts recalled their defeated Ariados and ran away at top speed, while Lorelei relaxed and walked to Ursula. The rich heiress seemed to be alright, and was just now dusting her dress with one of her hands, trying to look elegant and nonchalant.

"Are you alright, miss?" Lorelei asked. "You are not injured, I hope."

Ursula straightened herself up. "I am... okay, I guess. I never imagined you would be the ones to save me... but thanks anyway. You were a great help." Then, she cast her glance around, looking at Misty and Dawn. "Hm. Sure it's a small world after all, Dee-Dee... who'd ever have thought that we'd meet again like this?"

Dawn didn't miss the snobbish, self-assured tone in her rival's voice, and the blue-haired girl frowned as Misty glanced at Ursula herself. "I take it she's a rival of yours... right, Dawn?" Misty asked. She still didn't know what to make of Ursula, but the first impression, so far, wasn't all that good.

"You are right about that, Misty." Dawn answered. "She's acoordinator like me, whom I met just before entering the Sinnoh GF... her name is Ursula, and I already faced her three times."

Ursula wrinkled her nose. "Hmph... right, and you always had beginner's luck on your side, Dee-dee..." she bitterly mused, before once again whipping out her superior, self-important smile. "Oh, well, not that I'm really bothered with that or anything. I already know that I'll get my rematch soon, so I'm just content with what I managed to do for now. By the way, there are some new people around here, I see." She looked curiously at Misty and Miyu - she had already seen Lorelei on several magazines, so she was already familiar with her.

Miyu interrupted the discussion, as her Mightyena kept sniffing the air in search of a possible menace. "We'll have all the time later to speak of competitions and solve your personal matters. For now, we need to reach the lower levels of the HQ." she calmly stated.

Ursula had nothing to object to this. "You're right... and by the way, my Pokemon are all down there somewhere. I have to go get them." she said, her haughty attitude now marred with an anxiety Dawn had never felt from her.

Lorelei thought about it. "Indeed... so, I guess Team Rocket took all of their prisoners' Pokeballs there. It is plausible they're transferring them to their other hideouts as we speak. Okay, then we'll go save those Pokemon. Your name is Ursula, right? At the moment, we need all the help we can get, so... I'm asking you to lend us a hand, at least for now. Will you do this?"

"I'm not exactly enthusiastic to team up with Dee-dee here..." Ursula answered bitterly, she and Dawn exchanging an annoyed glance. "But if it's to save my Pokemon and pay Team Rocket back for kidnapping me, count me in."

"Thanks, Ursula..." Misty said as her Mantyke returned to her. Misty gently scratched the small manta ray on her head. "And thanks to you too, Mantyke! I knew you would have been great!"

"_Tyke, tyke!_" Mantyke chirped happily, before Misty recalled her in her Pokeball, while Ursula gave a nonchalant nod to Misty's thanks. Night Sky, for her part, sniffed the air again and turned to another corridor, going further down, from which a cold wind was blowing.

"_Might! Might!_" she barked, pointing to her recent discovery.

"What's the matter, Night Sky?" Miyu asked curiously, as she stroked her Houndoom's head and recalled him in his Pokeball. "You've found something, haven't you?"

The Mightyena barked again and pointed to the corridor with one of her forepaws, as the girls gathered around her. "Alright then, we'll follow Night Sky." Lorelei stated. "Her sense of smell is our best chance to find Ursula's Pokemon, as well as the other trainers'."

Night Sky nodded with a sharp gesture of her muzzle, and the team began following her in the Team Rocket's underground HQ, hoping to find something...

**oooooooooo**

"Heh... these guys are pushovers! Just look how easily they go down!" Homura said cockily, as another bunch of Team Rocket Pokemon were knocked out by a Brick Break attack from Brock's Croagunk, and a Flame Wheel for his own Rapidash. None of the opponents they had met until now had managed to put up resistance for more than a minute, and the group of boys were getting closer to the lower levels...

"In fact, I wasn't really expecting them to last that long..." Gary commented. His Kingler had just defeated a pair of Weepinbell that had recklessly tried to attack him, and had been met with a Crab Hammer attack from his larger claw. "But we're getting closer to the harder part. Their leaders must be in there, somewhere..."

"I and Lorelei should be able to take them." Lance commented. "Though I'd still be wary if I were you, guys. I suspect they have another trap ready..."

Lance had barely even finished speaking when the ground started shaking madly under their feet... and the floor literally slid away from under Ash, Brock, Gary and their Pokemon, who let out a surprised yelp as they stumbled into some sort of slide and fell down! Homura's eyes widened, and the Fire-type expert tried to extend a hand to his friends from Kanto... but it was too late, and he grasped nothing buy air while the sliding rock returned in its place with a dull thud. Homura was stunned: they hadn't even noticed that trap, and now they had been separated... which meant, they were more vulnerable!

"Ash, Pikachu! Guys!" the biker exclaimed, as a rather alarmed Lance ran to the place where the trap had sprung up...

Meanwhile Ash, Pikachu and their friends were sliding down the large tunnel, that seemed to go down for hundreds for yards into the island's underground. All they could see was a chaotic mishmash of rocky formations flashing in front of their eyes, as well as a quick glimpse of their friends in the pitch-black darkness as they fell towards the unknown...

"AAAAARGH! Isn't this fall going to..." Ash started screaming... cutting himself off when a sudden wave of cold washed over him, and the improvised slide ended, dropping him, Pikachu, Brock, Croagunk, Gary and Kingler in another room... a room whose walls were covered in ice, with menacing ice spikes hanging from the ceiling, and another corridor, at the other end of the room, brought to a ramp of stairs that went deeper and deeper inside the cavern. The guys shivered from the cold as they and their Pokemon quickly stood up, looking around themselves to see where they had ended up...

"_Pika pika chu... Pika pi!_" Pikachu exclaimed as he shook off the snow and water that had ended up on his fur, before calling for Ash and his friends in order to make sure they were alright. Luckily, apart from a few bruises, they were completely unharmed.

"Owww... man, if only we weren't in Team Rocket's hideout, I might even have had fun!" Ash said, rubbing his aching shoulder. He quickly bent down and picked up his starter. "Thanks, Pikachu, I'm okay! Brock, Gary... you okay as well?"

"No problem, Ash... even Croagunk and Kingler seem to be okay! The boy with the perpetually-closed eyes answered. The frog Pokemon's smile had not waned as he picked himself up, while Kingler was already up and about, shaking off the fall as if it had never happened. "The problem is, we've been separated from Lance and Homura, and we have no idea where we are or where to go..."

"Hohohohohooooo! Don't worry, we know exactly where you're supposed to go now!" a female voice laughed triumphantly. A female figure with long, fiery hair was coming, joined by three more people and by a familiar-looking Meowth! A comically disappointed expression painted itself on the young trainers' faces as Team Rocket made their triumphant return, with Jessie, James and Meowth in front of them!

"Listen, is that a voice I hear?"

"It's speakking to me loud and clear..."

James yelped in surprise as a steely Skarmory swept down and grabbed the rose away from his hand, tearing it to pieces with his sharp beak... and while the poor guy looked in shock at the remains of his trademark flower, Attila and Hun stepped forward, almost looming on their more innocuous companions!

"If you have time for being buffoons..." Hun stated as she allowed her Skarmory to perch on her arm. "You also have time to take out these kids! Master Archer does not pay you for being performers, are we clear on this?"

"Ugh... you are more than clear... such manners!" Meowth grumbled. In a rather clumsy attempt to sound intimidating, the cat Pokemon cleared his voce and raised his clawed paws in what was meant to be a threatening gesture. "Er... anyway, let's get to the matter at hand! Welcome to the Ice Cave, twerps... we were just waiting for you to come, so that we can settle things once and for all! Now we'll defeat you and capture your Pikachu!"

"_Pikachu..._" the yellow mouse muttered in exasperation...

"Just as we thought... Team Rocket! And those two guys from earlier..." Brock commented, more concerned about Attila and Hun than the rest. It was plain clear that they were not to be underestimated. "Why are youhere, you two? And you even helped us stopping Moltres back in Knot Island..."

"This has nothing to do with us now! We're Team Rocket, after all, and being in your way and trying to capture Pikachu is part of the job description!" James answered with a huge smile. "And we need to curry some favor with the boss! So... get ready to fight, twerps! And we're not going to retreat that easily, this time! Go, Slugma! I'll give you the honor of being the first!"

The Pokeball containing James' latest Pokemon opened up, and the lava snail jumped out, happily jumping around. "_Slugma! Slugma!_" she exclaimed enthusiastically, before standing at attention and getting ready to fight!

"Hah! You wanna face them with that runt of a Pokemon? Your funeral... now, I'll show you what a real Pokemon is!" Attila exclaimed. "Come on, Steelix! Time to fight!"

The huge steel snake appeared before Ash and his friends, while Hun's Skarmory took flight again, joined by Jessie's Yanmega. Even Pikachu, Croagunk and Kingler stood ready as Ash reached for another Pokeball in order to bring out another fighter. This was not looking to be an easy fight, and he had a bad feeling about this...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Notes: And here we go! The battle with Team Rocket has started, and it seems Ursula has joined the team, though she won't be able to do much without her Pokemon... this battle is shaping up to be quite heated, in spite of the place where it is taking place! How will it go? Stay tuned for the next installment! **


	30. Melting The Ice

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Here I am! Welcome back to my story... and Happy New Year, everyone! We're leaving behind a year that has not been exactly stellar - at least, generally speaking - and we ope that the year to come will bring more good news to all of us! And while we're at it, why not start things out with a brand new chapters of my very own Pokemon story, especially considering that we've left Ash and company in a rather difficult situation last time? Yeah, Floe Island is about to become the scenario for a very important battle, and we'll get to see whether our heroes can thwart Team Rocket's plans before the criminal organization gets too great an advantage.**

**And there's also the fact that the girls are busy dealing their own blows to the organization. Ursula has temporarily joined the team - and possibly, it will be more than just a temporary thing. There is much to do for our heroes, and little time in which to do it... can they prevent Team Rocket from getting the NeverMeltIce and get out of the Ice Cave alive and in one piece? All bets are off once the new Team Rocket executives show their true colours to the all-too-trusting Jessie and James...**

**But enough talking, let's enjoy the chapter and worry about technicalities later! Happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 30 - Melting The Ice**

"And the winner of this competition, and of the Juniper Ribbon is... Kenny, from the continent of Sinnoh! Let's all hear it for this young, brave champion!"

The annonucer's voice was followed by an invigorating round of applause, as Kenny held his ribbon high in the air, feeling proud of his victory. He had to admit,he had come a long way ever since he had said goodbye to Dawn on the shores where he and Ash had had their deciding battle... and more to the point, he had become better at controlling his own Pokemon's power, and had managed to work up some very interesting strategies. With a pleasant smile, the young Twinleaf boy thought of his best friend - and, who knows, maybe something more.

She was probably somewhere far away, having some strange adventure together with Ash and the others... and even as the audience applauded his performance, and that of his Empoleon and Floatzel, standing proudly in front of him and waving their paws/wings, he could not help but feel some twinge of jealousy and regret at the thought that Dawn was still around Ash. No matter how hs rational side tried to tell him that he had no reason to feel this way, his emotional side kept screaming at him and making him worry about his blue-haired friend...

"Well, Dawn, looks like I am slowly catching up to you, step by step..." Kenny told himself, with Empoleon and Floatzel standing besides him. "I'd really love to show you how much better I've gotten ever since we last saw each other... who knows where you are right now. I just hope that, wherever you are, you're having fun..."

**oooooooooo**

"Hmm... very good, looks like things are going great, at least for now..." Proton murmured after taking a good look at a digital map of their headquarters, upon which several luminous dots were showing the position of either one of their agents,or one of the intruders. At the moment, most of the dots were concentrated in the lower floors, or was right inside the Ice Cave. "Most of our men have gathered inside the cave, andI reckon our primary objective will soon be within reach. We've also managed to evacuate a good number of hostages, and those we have lost to those meddlesome kids are too few to really make a difference. We've managed to keep damage to a minimum, all things considered."

"That's good." Archer stated, the other executives joining himas he approached Proton. "Then, as soon as our men get their hands on the NeverMeltIce, we can get out of here and hopefully get rid of those troublesome brats. Ariana, Petrel... I trust you are ready yourselves."

"Yes, Mr. Archer, we are ready whenever you are! Though personally I would rather stay here and enjoy our victory on those rugrats!" Petrel answered as he scratched his short purple beard. "As soon as the NeverMeltIce is taken out of its position, well... those kids will know a new meaning of "being in deep water"! Heheheee..."

"Look, Petrel, you are no good at telling jokes..." Ariana said with an exasperated sigh. "On that matter, Mr. Archer... do you know if our bases in Chrono, Fortune and Quest Island have found anything?"

"If you're talking about the Ruby, the Sapphire and the Emerald, they told me they're within an hair's breadth of them!" Archer answered with a grin. "Giovanni will be very happy of the recent developments. Despite a few problems, it's going exactly how it was planned."

**oooooooooo**

Ash looked rather distraught, as the Team Rocket Pokemon stood in front of them, ready to fight. He was trying to decide which of his Pokemon to send out in order to even out the numbers... but before he could take a decision, Brock raised one hand, as if asking for permission to speak, and took a Pokeball out of his belt. The somewhat puzzled Ash looked at him in wonder for a second, but quickly understood and nodded to the former Gym Leader, who thanked him with a slight smile, and sent out his latest capture. "Alright then... I'm leaving this to you, Rhyhorn! Do your best!" he exclaimed.

In a blinding flash, with a deep grunt, the stone-skinned rhino popped up in front of Team Rocket's Pokemon, who did not look impressed in the least, and kept advancing slowly but inexorably. Attila's Steelix, in particular, was still towering over Ash's team, and it didn't look like Brock's Rhyhorn could do much against him.

"Heheheee... well, will you look at that Rhyhorn! And here I thought you didn't have a single decent Pokemon among you three!" Attila laughed. "Not that it really matters, anyway! C'mon, Steelix! Swat him away with Iron Tail! Just don't bring down the place, okay?"

"_STEEEEL!_" The iron serpent roared. With unthinkable agility for such a behemoth, the Steel-type spun on himself and delivered a mighty tail slam, striking both Rhyhorn and Umbreon, and sending them flying! The two Pokemon slid to the ground in a stunned heap, but they quickly got up, just in time to see Jessie's Yanmega bearing down on them, her wings spead aggressively!

"Hohohohooo! And now, let my Yanmega give you a little extra! C'mon, Yanmega, use Bug Buzz!" the fucsia-haired criminal ordered. The gigantic garner began frantically beating her wings, sending out a powerful sound blast towards Rhyhorn and Umbreon... but Brock's Croagunk, deciding it was time to intervene, quickly placed himself between Yanmega and her targets, tanking the Bug Buzz with his powerful front paws and sparing his friends - especially Umbreon - a very dangerous attack!

"_CROA!_" the toad Pokemon croaked as the sound waves struck him... but his type combination made him particularly resistant to Bug-type attacks, and he only got a few scraches. Yanmega buzzed in anger and frustration, and tried to strike back with a Flying-type attack, but she was unable to do so before Pikachu intervened.

"_Pika pika chuuuu!_" the electric mouse squeaked as he unleashed his trademark Thunderbolt attack on the Ogre Garner! Jessie managed to order her Pokemon to do a Double Team attack just in time, and the huge dragonfly seemed to split in two, dodging the dangerous Electric attack just in time. Ash grit his teeth in disappointment, while James decided it was time for him to take action.

"Alright, Slugma, it's up to us now... use Smokescreen!" the azure-haired boy called out. "Let's muddle things up a little for those twerps!"

"_Slug!_" the lava slug answered, her head moving up and down before she breathed a cloud of charcoal-black smoke from her mouth, right in the faces of Pikachu and his friends, forcing them to step backwards in a fit of coughing, their eyes watering... all except Rhyhorn, who stood his ground, as if expecting the enemy to come at him again.

"With your permission, it's my turn." Hun coldly stated. "Skarmory, hit with a Steel Wing."

Shrieking in defiance, the steel raptor flew up high and swept down, his wings outstretched and ready to strike. Rhyhorn tried to step backwards, but he was no match for the fast Steel / Flying type's speed, and he grunted in anger and pain when Skarmory's heavy wing struck him on the side, denting his rock-hard hide. Rhyhorn angrily turned aroud and tried to strike Skarmory with an Horn Attack... but the enemy had expected such a counterattack, and had already gotten far away enough to avoid it. Hun nodded in approval, a malicious grin on her glacially beautiful face.

"Don't stay there, Rhyhorn, or you'll be a sitting duck to that Skarmory!" Brock called to his latest Pokemon, and the Rock / Ground type rhinoceros grunted in humiliation at the fact that he was unable to face those opponents. However, he did as his trainer requested and backtracked, his horn kept high in case hs enemies tried anything. Luckily, Slugma's Smokescreen still hadn't worn out, which gave Ash and his friends ample time a few moments to think of another way to attack...

"Alright then, we just have to think of another plan." Gary said to himself, keeping his calm. "Ash.. you and Pikachu, be ready to attack at my command! I think I've got an idea, but I'll need your Pikachu's Agility to do that."

"What?" Ash asked, somewhat surprised. "Well, there's no problem with that... but what are your intentions?"

"Just wait and see..." Gary stated, one of his knowing grins on his face, the kind Ash was used to see on his face ever since they started their journey. Ash knew his friend and rival had something in mind, and he had to admit, he was rather annoyed at the fact that Gary was trying to be mysterious in such a situation.

"Okay... Ash, do as Gary said! My Pokemon and I will create a diversion in case Team Rocket tried to interfere!" Brock stated. "Rhyhorn, Croagunk, stand ready!"

"Hm? What are those rugrats trying to do?" Attila asked himself, seeing his opponents' shapes moving through Slugma's Smokescreen. "I think they're trying to pull a fast one on us... we'd better act and take them out before they get annoying!"

"Hey, I don't mean to be a wet blanket or anything..." Meowth intervened. "But whenever we think we've got them, the twerps do something unexpected and turn the tables on us! Let's not do anything rash, 'kay?"

"Hahaaaa! Don't worry, we were part of this organization when you were still drinking milk! We know how to deal with these nuisances! Now, Steelix... use a Body Slam attack!" the corpulent Team Rocket agent stated. The iron serpent roared, coiled around... and launched himself at his opponents with all of his weight... and just then, as if he had taken Steelix's move as a start signal, Pikachu dashed towards the Smokescreen, keeping his ears low as he increased his own speed. Steelix stopped for a moment, as if Pikachu's bold move had surprised him... but knowing that Electric-type attacks would have no effect on him, he quickly continued his attack. Unfortunately for him, he had lost quite a bit of his momentum, and that split second he had wasted had been enough for the other Pokemon to work up a counter! Croagunk jumped up and descended on Steelix's head, striking him with a poweful Brick Break attack that managed to dent the steel serpent's snout! Roaring in annoyance, Steelix coiled up as Pikachu burst out of the Smokescreen, dashing towards Skarmory and Yanmega!

"Ugh... Slugma, stop that Pikachu, now!" James ordered his latest Pokemon... but a black shadow appeared beside the lava slug before she could attempt anything, and Gary's Umbreon popped out of seemingly nowhere, baring his claws in a flawlessly executed Faint attack. Slugma was hit by a blindingly fast strike, and Pikachu quickly threw himself sideways and speed-climbed the icy wall on his left, followed by Skarmory and Yanmega's angry stares.

"What's that brat thinking? It will be pointless, anyway!" Hun exclaimed angrly.

In the meanwhile, Ash seemed to have understood what Gary's idea was... he smiled and gave Pikachu a new order. "That's great... now I understand what Gary was thinking! Alright, Pikachu... use a Volt Tackle!"

"_PIKA!_" his starter answered. He stopped halfway through hs climb and, surrounded in a crackling electric aura, he launched himself at the two Flying-types, resembling an electrified torpedo! The giant garner and the steel bird were struck and electrified, and Skarmory's screech resonated through the icy cave as Pikachu somersaulted through the air and landed on his feet in the midst of the battlefield and besides Umbreon! "_Pika pka, chu!_" he exclaimed as he turned to Umbreon, and the black-and-golden Pokemon answered by moving his ears and emitting a cry that sounded halfway between cute and eerie.

"_Eoooon!_"

"_STEEEEEELIX!_" the iron serpent's enraged roar interrupted the moment of triumph... but not for long, as instead of launching himself at Pikachu and Umbreon, the gigantic Steel-type reptile was sent flying in the air above them, courtesy of a powerful Take Down attack from Brock's Rhyhorn! The iron skin had protected Steelix from damage, but Rhyhorn's impetus had been enough to lift him in the air and make him fly right towards Jessie, James and Meowth!

"Hey! Watch where you guys are fighting, will ya?" the feline Pokemon protested! With comically fearful expressions on their faces, the clumsy trio got away just in time to avoid being flattened like pancakes, as Steelix landed with an earth-shaking slam! Several pieces of ice detached from the ceiling and fell down, and for a second, Hun actually looked annoyed at that unexpected turn of fortune. As Team Rocket's Pokemons retreated towards their trainers, and Ash, Brock and Gary's stepped out of the now-dwindling Smokescreen, the criminals decided it was time for a tactical retreat.

"We can't keep fighting here..." Hun stated, motioning for her Skarmory to come back to her. While he was still stunned because of the earlier Volt Tackle, the steel raptor noisily flew back to his trainer. "Alright... Attila, James, Jessie! We'll retreat to the innermost part of the cave! Follow me!"

"Hey, hold on a sec!" James said in surprise as he recalled his Slugma back in her Pokeball. "What the.. why this order, all of a sudden?"

"Do not discuss that, pal! Orders are orders!" Attila repriminded him as he recalled his Steelix and followed his partner in crime down a corridor that ran towards the lower levels. While James, Jessie and Meowth did not understand the reasoning behind that order, they decided not to discuss further, and ran away in the same direction, with Yanmega following them and acting as a rear guard, and Ash and Rhyhorn in hot pursuit!

"Hey, where are you going?" the Sinnoh champion exclaimed. "Hold on a sec! You aren't getting away like this!"

"_Pikachu!_" the yellow mouse squeaked, his lightning-shaped tail kept high. He was about to give chase as well, but they all stopped when Brock raised a hand, calling for them not to do anything stupid.

"Hold on, guys!" the dark-skinned young man said. "Don't give chase so recklessly! We don't know what's down there, and there might be a trap!"

"Huh? Brock..." Ash exclaimed, stopping just before entering the corridor. Pikachu and Rhyhorn stopped as well and turned to their trainers. "What do you mean? You think they're trying to draw us there, and then trap us in?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if they did..." Gary stated, his loyal Umbreon by his side. "I know we don't have muc of a choice anyway, but we have to make sure we don't get drawn into some dead end or worse. Umbreon,can you go forward? You're the stealthiest of all our Pokemon, and you can tell us if there are ambushes or things like that..."

"_Umbreon!_" The Dark-type answered, nodding energically.

**oooooooooo**

"Okay... I really didn't see that one coming! What's Team Rocket trying to find, in this icy mess?" Ursula aked, keeping her voice low in order for it not to echo on the walls.

"They're looking for an artifact that allows this cave not to thaw." Lorelei answered, peeking from an angle to make sure there were no guards around. "I don't know what Team Rocket is planning to do with it, but I do know that, should the NeverMeltIce be taken from its place, the ice will melt, severely damaging this island's ecosystem."

As she said that, Lorelei looked at one of her Pokeballs with nostalgia, surely the one belonging to the Lapras she had met as a young girl in that icy, yet still dear to her, maze. She would have been rather upset herself if anything had happened to the Ice Cave... and Ursula herself was rather surprised to find herself sympathizing with the Elite Four's plight...

The girls stopped as Miyu's Mightyena, Night Sky, sniffed the air in front of herself and grabbed her trainer's skirt in her mouth, gently tugging towards a smaller corridor excavated in the icy rock. Miyu realized that was the place where Team Rocket had brought the Pokemon belonging to their hostages, and motioned for the other girls to follow her that way.

"Okay, girls... I think Night Sky found something!" the gothic lolita stated. "If the hostages' Pokemon are there, we'll also find the ones belonging to the little princess here, right?"

Ursula's right eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "L-little princess?"

"Well, you've got the curls... and the attitude as well!" Misty snarked, as Ursula could do nothing but twirl one of her spiral-shaped twintails and sigh in irritation. At least she was happy that they had managed to find Gabite and the rest of her team, though she still had the definite impression that she hadn't exactly clicked with Misty and Miyu... and she didn't exactly like them a lot herself.

"Okay, then... let's go take them back!" the rich heiress sighed, and the girls followed Night Sky through the split in the icy rock, with Misty shivering for the cold as they stepped inside.

"Phew... if I knew I would have to sneak in an icy tunnel, I would have worn something heavier..." the redhead stated, referring to her clothing - her usual yellow top with matching shorts, and her red summer shoes. The girls had to walk with caution, as the walls of the tunnel were filled with sharp edges, which could have easily wounded them. In a couple of occasions, Ursula had to choke back an exclamation as her elegant dress got caught in something... but the team was finally able to reach the end of the icy corridor and emerge into a large room excavated in the bare rock, filled with shelves upon which all the Pokeballs Team Rocket had taken away from their hostages were being kept, organized in boxes and placed in alphabetic order. Which was something Misty and Dawn were grateful to the higher-ups of the criminal team - they had spared them a whole lot of work!

"Excellent! Nicely done, Night Sky!" Miyu stated, scratching her Mightyena behind an ear and getting a couple grateful yowls from the black-and-grey hyena in return. Then, the Mightyena turned to a bunch of shelves on her right and barked again... just as Ursula got to the Pokeballs held there in a hurry!

"There they are! My Pokeballs!" the spiral-haired girl exclaimed joyfully as she opened a box with her name written upon it, and retrieved her Pokeballs from it! "I'm so relieved! You're alright, guys, aren't you? They didn't hurt you, right?"

As Ursula took back her Pokeballs, Dawn looked at her with a pleased smile - this was one of those rare times where Ursula was wearing a truly sweet smile, instead of her usual haughty, I-m-better-than-you expression. She looked really happy that her Pokemon were safe and sound, and Dawn was happy to see that side of her rival's personality.

"We're happy that you found your Pokemon!" Lorelei said as she gave a smile to Ursula, who turned to the Elite Four and curtseyed gracefully.

"Yes... thank you very much, miss Lorelei, my Pokemon... especially my Gabite... are very important friends to me! If I lost them... I don't know what I'd do..." she stated. A part of her skirt, which had gotten lacerated along the corridor, was ripped and remained between her fingers, causing Ursula to throw it away with a sigh. "Ugh... pity, it was my favourite skirt..."

"We'll think about that later..." Dawn answered. "Now we have to find Ash and the others. With all the noise we made, I'd be surprised if Team Rocket was not looking for us all over the place already. We need to get away before we get swarmed!"

"Dawn is right, we need to reach the guys as soon as possible!" Misty answered. "Who knows where they are right now... for now, we should try to take as many of these boxes as possible to the upper floors, so that at least the Pokemon will be safe..."

"Ursula and I can take care of it." Miyu stated, grabbing some of the boxes while Ursula did the same with others. "You go ahead and try to help Ash and the others! See you on the surface!"

**oooooooooo**

"Arcanine, use Flare Blitz!"

Following Homura's order, the fiery dog-lion Pokemon charged through a mixed group of Pokemon that was trying to stand in his way, surrounded by a blazing aura and trampling them effortlessly under the Rocket grunts' incredulous stares! The young rider nodded, his arms crossed on his chest, and smiled behind his helmet, affixing the grunts with an hard stare, and completely taking away their remaining will to fight. However, they were left with no other option, as Lance's red Gyarados, whom he had captured at the Lake of Rage several years before, placed himself in front of the only exit, towering over the terrified grunts and baring his razor-sharp fangs at them!

"Ah... er... he-hello... we... hehehee... we were just passing through and... ugh... help..." one of the grunts meekly tried to appease the shiny Gyarados, causing the sea serpent to dangerously narrow his eyes at him and growl. He didn't seem to be in the mood for listening to such silliness... "Aaaargh! You... you don't have to get angry, you know!"

Wisely, the other grunts decided that it was a bad idea to push their luck with the huge serpent, and they gave up at once, dropping the Pokeballs they were carrying. Homura's Arcanine approached the grunts, his head kept high and his eyes glaring at the enemies in victory.

"Nice job, Gyarados. And now, gentlemen... I believe I have some questions to ask you." Lance stated, as he and Homura approached the captured grunts. "Should you comply, I will ask the police for leniency on your punishment."

"Or else... well, I don't think I need to elaborate further." Homura added. The biker stroke the warm, luxurious fur on his Arcanine's side, causing the majestic dog-lion to smile cunningly before glaring at the Rocket grunts, giving greater emphasis to his trainer's threat.

Needless to say, the combination of Homura's Arcanine and Lance's shiny Gyarados did wonders to convince Team Rocket to cooperate! One of the grunts raised his hands in surrender, as comical sweatdrops sprayed from his head! "Aieeee! Hold... hold on a sec, pal! Keep those beasts on a leash! We'll talk!" he exclaimed, as Homura nodded in agreement and motioned for his Arcanine to stand back. Gyarados himself retreated a little, in order to allow the grunts to speak without feeling threatened. "Y-you see, the bigwigs had the base evacuated as soon as we knew you guys were coming... and the three Kanto trainers, well... we have separated them from your group, so that it would be easier to take them out! Though, sadly, some of our hostages escaped, all thanks to those girls who were with you..."

"You're talking about my colleague, and the other trainers that have gotten in from the other entrance, right?" the dragon tamer rhetorically asked, and the grunt nodded wordlessly.

"R-right... Now that we're about to take the NeverMeltIce, the artifact that keeps these caverns frozen... our leaders wanted us to draw their enemies in the innermost levels of the Ice Cave... so that, when we get our prize, the caves will be flooded, and we'll get rid of those meddling kids!" the grunt answered. "We... we were just following orders, you see? We didn't have a choice in the matter! We had to do it, or we would have paid the consequences!"

The grunt stopped himself again when Homura's Arcanine approached him with a menacing growl, invading his space.

"But you did have a choice when you decided to join Team Rocket, right?" Homura stated, unconvinced. "So, don't go looking for excuses, okay? Rather, take us to the underground passages! We have to save our friends, before the place gets flooded!"

"Er..." the grunt seemed to hesitate for a moment, before Arcanine and Gyarados' intimidating stares worked their magic! "Alright, alright already! Just... don't hurt me, okay? Okay, you... you just have to follow us, and we'll take you to them! P-Please, this way!"

"Good. Asking nicely will get you anywhere." Homura commented in satisfaction, hoping it was not too late to save their friends, and that even the girls were doing okay...

**oooooooooo**

Ash, Pikachu, Brock, Croagunk, Gary and Umbreon were varily following the trail left by James, Jessie and the other Team Rocket members as they made their way through the icy corridors, keeping their eyes peeled for anything that might have looked like a trap. There was something eerie about that place... possibly, the fact that other sounds could be heard in the distance, but they were seeing nothing that could have caused them. Some sort of danger was bound to arrive sooner or later... and the ever-increasing cold certainly didn't help.

Finally, a familiar noise from a corridor in front of the attracted Pikachu's attention, causing him to raise his pointed ears and frown. He was sure he had heard the buzzing of Jessie's Yanmega... and it was quite close as well!

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse squeaked, pointing to the place where the sound had come from. Everyone stopped for a moment and followed Pikachu in that tunnel, hoping that was the right time. It was easy to lose their way, in that icy maze...

Luckily, they did not have to look much further: the Team Rocket members reappeared almost immediately after, as soon as Ash and his friends reached a large room whose walls were covered in ice. Jessie and James had already let out two more of their own Pokemon, namely Seviper and Carnivine, in order to support Slugma and Yanmega, and seemed ready for the second round! Attila's Steelix and Hun's Skarmory were right behind them.

"My, these kids sure are persistent!" Attila said, never once losing his sarcastic edge. "Not bad at all, you followed us in this labyrinth, and you managed to get to us... but I wonder whether you'll manage to get out of here as easily as you got in! What do you say, Hun?"

The silver-haired woman didn't even blink, and she simply motioned to her Steel / Flying Pokemon, who cawed in anger and took flight once again, his razor-sharp wings flapping with a sinister metal sound. Jessie and James looked ready as well, facing off against Ash, Gary, Brock and their Pokemon, who were standing right in front of them. Pikachu was standing in front of everyone, waiting for Team Rocket to make their first move...

Which they did soon enough... but it wasn't what Ash and his friends were expecting.

Attila turned to his partner in crime, who answered with a nod... and the blond criminal smirked and gave an unexpected order to his Steelix! "Alright, Steelix, time to give these pushovers a lesson!" he exclaimed. "Use a Sandstorm attack, now!"

The steel serpent let out a powerful roar and began frantically shaking his coils, hitting the walls with incredible power! The surprised Jessie, James and Meowth, along with their Pokemon, stopped cold, turning to the other two agents... and even Ash and his friends looked rather distraught, asking themselves what Attila was thinking...

"Is he using a Sandstorm? Is he mad?" Brock exclaimed. "He will collapse the whole tunnel this way!"

Attila laughed heartily as Hun gave an order to her Skarmory, and the Steel / Flying Pokemon flew up to the ceiling and used his Steel Wing attack to hit the icy spikes hanging from it, causing them to fall to the ground in a deafening avalanche of solid ice, which struck the ground between Ash's team and the Team Rocket trio!

"Aaaargh! What are they thinking, doing something like this?" Jessie screamed. Her Yanmega managed to narrowly dodge a falling slab of ice, while her Seviper widened her eyes in surprise and indignation as she saw that Attila, Hun and their Pokemon were taking advantage of the confusion to get away!

"_Seviperrrrr!_" the saber-toothed viper hissed in anger.

"Hey, what are you two doing? Are you abandoning your companions?" Ash exclaimed. Attila and Hun ran into a corridor further away from there, and the man turned around one last time to smirk at the team again... and at those that had been his allies until a few seconds earlier!

"Hahahaaa! Those buffoons were never our companions to begin with!" Attila exclaimed, smirking cruelly. "Their only use to us was to draw you kids here and distract you, while we get away with this island's treasure!"

"What?" Gary exclaimed, using his arm to shield himself from a few icy debris falling from the ceiling. "What do you mean? Does that mean... your friends have found that NeverMeltIce thing?"

"They'll be taking it any minute now." Hun stated emotionlessly. "We have what we came here for, so we don't care about the rest. Our ways part here, brats."

"Hey, hey! Hold on a second here!" James panicked. "You... you can't leave us here! I don't wanna get frozen inside this oversized fridge!"

"If your friends remove the NeverMeltIce from its place, the island's ecosystem will be severely damaged!" Brock exclaimed, hoping that at least Attila and Hun were willing to listen to reason... but even his appeals fell of deaf ears.

"Well, that's nothing that concerns us." Hun shot back. "And about you three fools... did you actually believe Team Rocket needed three bumbling morons like you? How foolish... we just needed you as bait."

"And anyway... instead of worrying about the ecosystem of this little piece of rock in the sea, you should worry about your own lives! You do know what will happen when we take the NeverMeltIce away, right?" Attila chuckled. He laughed out loud once again, before a huge block of ice fell and blocked the passage he and Hun had run into, stopping Ash's group from following them!

"Wh... What?" James meekly stammered. "What's going to happen when they find... that?"

Brock grit his teeth, knowing that things were getting very difficult indeed. "When they remove the NeverMeltIce from its place, the caves will quickly thaw, and the tunnels will be flooded in a few minutes! If we're still inside when this happens, we'll either drown or be crushed to death by the water pressure." he quickly explained.

Needless to say, this explanation threw James into utter panic... and his Carnivine as well, who quickly hugged him, wrapping his vines aroud his trainer! "WHAAAAAT? We... we are going to... to... AAAAAAAARGH! Nooooo, I don't wanna die like this! I'm still too young and innocent! WAAAAAAAAH!"

"_Carniviiiiiiiine!_"

"_Sluuuuuuuugma!_" the young man's Slugma began crying as well, with comical fountains of tears gushing out of both her eyes and her trainer's! Jessie moved away in order not to get washed up by those oversized torrents of tears, but her Seviper wasn't fast enough, and she found herself under a salty shower a split seconds after!

"_Seviper..._" the snake hissed in frustration, slowly moving her forked tongue.

"Ah... er... okay! Okay, everyone, let's try not to panic!" Brock tried to keep control of the situation, despite the fact that he was quite afraid himself. "We need to find a way out of here, that's all. We still have some time, right? Then, let's use it to get as close to the exit as we can."

"I'm afraid it will be hard, we don't even know where we are..." Gary affirmed. "Still, you're right, if we stay here, our Psyduck is cooked! Our only hope is to get as far away as possible..."

Jessie nodded and shook James' shoulder, trying to force him to reason. "Well, as much as I hate to admit it, you twerps are right! Hey, James, snap out of it! We're in danger every second we stay, we have to get away!"

"And... and... how do we do THAT?" James exclaimed, convinced that would be the end of the line for all of them. He would probably have degenerated into a panicked mess, had Meowth not proceeded to snap him out of his funk, by jumping up and Scratching him in the face, leaving three glowing lines on his face!

"Oh, quit your whining, will ya?" the cat Pokemon shouted. James yelped in pain as his companion'sclaws hit him in the face... but at least, this did have the effect of making him focus on the situation! "Now, listen, we don't wanna end up like a drowned Rattata in this place! So get a hold of yourself, Jamie-boy, and we hightail it out of here! And if that means having the twerps help us, so be it! Recall your Pokemon, and go!" he exclaimed before turning to Ash, Brock and Gary. "And you, take care! If we drown, there will be heck to pay!"

"_Pika chuuuu!_" Pikachu retorted fiercely, as if saying there was no chance it would end like this. "_Pika pi, pikachu pi pi pika ka, pka pika chu?_"

"No worries, Pikachu, we're getting out of here right now!" the black-haired teenager answered. "Alright, follow us, we'll take you out of here!"

Ash hoped to himself that it really was going to be as easy as he made it sound...

**oooooooooo**

"Yay, and that's the NeverMeltIce! We finally got it!" Petrel exclaimed happily, as soon as the last slab of rock fell under the blows dealt by Team Rocket's mining Pokemon (mostly Fighting or Rock-type Pokemon) and crumpled to the ground, revealing a small natural room whosewalls were covered in azure-whitish ice, featuring what looked like an icy altar right in the middle of it. A strange object had been placed upon it - a piece of sculpted ice in the form of a rose, as large as a man's fist, seemingly just waiting for someone to come and collect it... and Petrel was not the kind of person to pass up such a chance!

The Team Rocket executive, after motioning for the workers to stand back, personally stepped into the freezing room, shivering from the cold as he felt the temperature of theroom getting colder and colder as he got closer to the artifact... to the point where he could see his own breath coming out of his mouth in white vapor clouds. After a few steps, the Team Rocket executive reached the altar and carefully took the NeverMeltIce in his gloved hand, looking at it with a satisfied, greedy stare. "Aaah, perfect! Just perfect! We got what we came here for!" Petrel cheered... but his mirth was interrupted by a low, cavernous noise that seemed to come from the very bowels of the planet itself, as if Floe Island had reacted with outrage at the theft of its most valuable treasure, and wanted to avenge itself in some way!

"Tch... we'd better scram, before this place gets flooded! The ice is melting, and soon this place will only exist in our memories!" Petrel stated, putting away the precious artifact. "Everyone, recall your Pokemon and run to the exits! Do we have all of the hostages?"

"Yes, commander Petrel!" a grunt answered after recalling his Graveler. "some of the hostages escaped thanks to those meddling kids, but not enough to really make a difference. We have things under control!"

"Alright!" Petrel finished. "Then, let's get a move! We're outta here!"

**oooooooooo**

Even Lorelei's group, consisting of her, Misty and Dawn, had heard that disquieting roar... and the girls had stopped right then and there as the ground shook underneath them, and the ice covering the walls began melting at breakneck speed as the temperature rose noticeably. Dawn let out a brief yell when some water from the ceiling dripped on her hat, while Lorelei's icy calm was shattered for all of five seconds: the Elite Four clenched her fists in frustration and grit her teeth.

"What's going on here, miss Lorelei?" Misty asked her idol, looking around herself in alarm. "The ice is melting, and the place is heating up! Does that mean..."

"Team Rocket has taken the NeverMeltIce. We're too late." Lorelei answered. "I'm afraid we can do nothing more here... this cave will soon catch up with the outside temperature, or at least get well above the ice's melting point. Which means that this place is about to get flooded!"

The worst case scenario was coming true, and much to Misty and Dawn's frustration, they could do nothing more than drop everything they were doing and save themselves. Of course, not before having made sure the guys were alright as well! "Darn... so we can't stay here any longer! We have to find Ash and the others... and get away from this place at once!" the redhead exclaimed. "The problem is, we have no idea where they are..."

As the ice continued retreating, and a large puddle had already formed under the girls' feet, Lorelei took out one of her Pokeballs and threw it in the air, letting her main Pokemon out. "Come, Lapras! We still need your help!" the Kanto Elite Four exclaimed, and the blue-skinned dinosaur-like Pokemon appeared in front of the female trainers with a melodic call... but his expression quicly turned sour and anxious when he saw what was happening, and understood that the Ice Cave was in its death throes...

"I'm sorry about that, Lapras... the Ice Cave is thawing out, those Team Rocket criminals have taken away the NeverMeltIce!" Lorelei warned, gritting her teeth and feeling a pang in her heart as the realization that a place so dear to her was going todisappear hit full force. The memories of her childhood flashed through her mind, but she had to suppress them and soldier on. "There's nothing more to do here... only find the other guys who came ere with us, and take them to a safe place! If we don't hurry, we'll be trampled by the incoming tide!"

The Water / Ice Pokemon looked down in depression for a few seconds... then, deciding that it was pointless to think about it, nodded and to his trainer and her friends, motioning for them to climb on his back. As soon as Lorelei, Misty and Dawn did so, Lapras began swimming in the still-shallow water,hoping it was not too late to save Ash and the others.

Running against the clock, Lapras paddled with his flippers, countering the rushing current which was slowly but surely getting stronger, and looked around in a desperate attempt to find the guys before it was too late. The sound of steps in the water, which Lapras' fine hearing could clearly perceive over the rush of the water, alerted him... and the Pokemon turned in the direction of the sound and began swimming for all he was worth!

"Ash! Gary, Brock!" Misty called. "Are you there? Please, answer us!"

"There they are!" Lorelei stated, looking in front of herself as several shapes appeared in the semi-darkness. There were seven of them, five humans and two Pokemon... and as they got closer, Lorelei managed a smile as she saw that Ash, Pikachu and their friends were among them, even though they had been joined by those two strange guys and that talking Meowth that had tried to steal Pikachu away after her battle with Ash in the Orange Islands...

"Ash! Everyone, this way!" Dawn exclaimed, standing up on Lapras' back and waving her arms in their direction.

"Miss Lorelei! Are we glad to see you!" Ash exclaimed as he and the others finally reached Lapras. He and Misty exchanged a quick hug. "How did you manage to get here? And... where is Miyu now?"

Misty pointed to the tunnel they had left behind. "She's found the Pokemon belonging to the trainers captured by Team Rocket, and now she, along with some spoiled rich kid that calls herself Dawn's rival, is carrying them to safety and trying to contact Lance and Homura..." she explained. "But we have to get out of here, quickly! This place will be flooded soon... and Team Rocket is coming as well!"

"You mean, Ursula is here as well?" Brock asked, before deciding to leave that aside for now. "Nevermind, we have no time to explain now. I'll just say that Jessie, James and Meowth have been betrayed by the rest of Team Rocket, and we can't just leave them here!"

A deafening roar covered Brock's words, and several of the trainers jumped up in fear, recognizing the rumbling sound of a tide of water about to wash them away! By the sound of it, it was already too close for them to do anything about it...

"Oh, man, we're in trouble..." Ash exclaimed, knowing it was a gross understatement.

"We're done for!" Jessie screamed, her face covered in blue lines from her fear. James and Meowth weren't any calmer... but Gary managed to keep his cool and come up with an idea that might have salvaged the situation. As the enormous tide got closer and closer, Prof. Oak's grandson took out one of his Pokeballs and let out his Blastoise, who appeared in front of the team and stomped one of his legs on the ground, like a sumo wrestler getting ready to fight!

"_BLAST!_" the Water-type starter roared, showing the shiny cannons on his back.

"Alright, we're going for broke here..." Gary said. "Blastoise, do you remember that move you learned from the Move Tutor? Hydro Cannon?" When the tortoise calmly nodded, despite the massive wave only seconds away, Gary cracked a smile. "Good! Use that to hold the tide back! At least that will buy us some time..."

Blastoise quickly turned in the direction from which the water was about to come from... and just then, the trainers saw a huge tide advancing inexorably towards them, with deafening noise and unbelievable power! Gary's Blastoise frowned and pointed both his cannons to the huge mass of water, charging up for a split second... then, he shot a pressurized blast of water from his cannons, with such sheer strength that Ash and his friends could feel their power from where they were standing right behind Blastoise! A frightening impact was heard as the two masses of water met each other... and, with a roar similar to that of an enraged Gyarados, the massive tide began to give ground! Blastoise grit his teeth and put even more oomph in his final attack, causing the tide to further retreat...

Lorelei nodded to herself, praising Gary's quickness of thought. It was clear that he was the grandson of a great scientist... "Hmm, now that was a great idea! But it won't hold for long, unless.." she said, before motioning for the rest of the team to stand aside. As soon as Ash and his surprised friends did as they were told, Lapras took a deep breath, anticipating his trainer's order. "Lapras, help him out! Freeze that mass of water with your Blizzard attack!"

Before Blastoise's attack could lose strength, Lapras breathed out a powerful gust of howling wind mixed with snow and ice crystals, that flew over the tortoise's head and hit the mass of water, stopping it on the spot! In wonder and admiration, Ash stood and watched as the massive tide that was about to trample them all solidified, turning into a wall of solid ice, and in a few seconds' time, Blastoise could relax and reduce his cannons' power, breathing out in relief as he saw that, at least for the moment, the wave had been stopped.

"Phew... that was really too close for confort, this time..." the young aspiring Pokemon Master murmured. "Gary, miss Lorelei... we have to thank you all, if it hadn't been for you..."

"But now we have to get out of here, and fast!" Misty intervened. "That ice barrier isn't going to hold forever! Let's reach Ursula and the others, and get out of here!"

"Of course..." Lorelei answered reluctantly. She would have wanted to do something more to save the place where she had met her Lapras as a little girl, and she was filled with cold anger at the thought of not being able to do anything.

And judging from Lapras' melanchonic sigh and angered frown, she wasn't the only one to feel that way.

**oooooooooo**

As this was going on inside the mountain's many tunnels, several ships and submarines bearing the Team Rocket sign weredeparting from Floe Island, without anyone being able to stop them, and were on their way to the other islands of the Sevii Archipelago... namely, Chrono and Fortune Islands, where two more Team Rocket bases were located. The Team Rocket executives had gotten on board the two largest ships, two for each ship... and at that moment, inside the piloting cabin of one of those ships, Archer was admiring the NeverMeltIce Petrel had just brought before him, well-defended under a glass dome. Attila and Hun were standing beside Archer, both of them looking quite pleased with their exploits.

"Perfect. I have to say, we can be satisfied of our work so far. Floe Island is of no more use to us now." the green-haired Team Rocket executive stated, as Petrel tried to warm up his hands, slightly frostbitten from holding the icy jewel. "Have you madesure those foolish kids can bother us no more?"

"No problem, boss! I don't think they will bother us anymore... even if they have survived, we'll be ready for them should they show up!" Attila exclaimed in fierce satisfaction, as he admired the NeverMeltIce and adjusted his sunglasses. "Heh... this little trinket sure is something. I'm kinda curious to know what we will use it for!"

"You'll see that later, Attila." Archer answered, before turning to Petrel and instructing him to get back to the ship's console. "Fine, then... Petrel, contact Ariana and Proton, and tell them to head for Chrono Island, while we get to Fortune. We need to prepare the next part of our plan, and take the Ruby and the Sapphire from there... if our subordinates have found them, that is."

"Alright, Archer! I'll tell them right away!" Petrel said, as he activated the communication device...

**oooooooooo**

_The little fucsia-haired, glasses-wearing girl smiled kindly, as she extended her lithe hand to caress the head of the Lapras she had just met and befriended, undaunted by the chilling temperature of the cavern she was in. In fact, she seemed to be just as at ease as the Pokemon himself was..._

_"Hi, Lapras... My name is Lorelei! Pleased to meet you, would you like to be my friend?" the girl asked, and Lapras answered by letting out his musical call, signifying the start of a new friendship..._

Lorelei sighed impotently as she looked at the rivers pouring down the holes in the rocky formation that, up until a few hours before, had been the place where her beloved Ice Cave could be found, and to which many childhood memories were bound. Lance, Miyu, Homura and all of Ash's group, now including Ursula, Jessie, James and Meowth, was standing near her at the moment. Of course, many had been surprised when the newcomers had shown up... but now, all questions had been put aside before what had happened. Floe Island had lost its greatest wonder, many Pokemon had lost their home, and some of them had surely lost their lives as well. The Ice Cave would never be the same again, after this...

"I'm sorry..." the Elite Four said. "We did all we could, but we still failed to keep those people from taking away the NeverMeltIce. This is a defeat for us, and for all those who live on Floe Island. I failed them all..."

Lance shook his head. "Don't feel too guilty about that, Lorelei... too many things were beyond our control, and we had no idea of what Team Rocket was willing to do to get what they wanted." he told her. "At least we managed to save several hostages and their Pokemon, thanks to Miyu and Ursula... Rather, we should focus on tracking down Team Rocket and foiling their plans... now that they have the NeverMeltIce, and have retreated to Chrono and Fortune Islands, anything might happen."

"To say nothing of the fact that we were pretty much dumped there... hadn't it been for you, we would have drowned there!" James murmured. "Man, I don't even want to think about it..."

"Don't know about you guys... but I'm not going to just swallow my pride and keep quiet! I want to pay them back for this!"

"Well, you're not the only one..." Ursula pointed out, glaring at the fucsia-haired girl. "Those clowns have kidnapped me and my Pokemon... and I won't be satisfied until I have gotten my revenge on them!"

"_Pika pika chu!_" Pikachu said, looking at the rest of the team. It was time to strike back at Team Rocket, and Homura seemed to already have an idea how...

"Alright... we're calling it a day for now. Then, tomorrow, we'll split up like we did today and chase after those guys. And if I'm allowed to ask for that, Lance, I'd like for our group to go to Fortune Island!"

Lance had nothing to object to any of this. "I'm okay with it. After all, that island is where you were born." the dragon tamer answered. "Alright... this time, we cannot afford to make mistakes, there is much at stake here..."

The day was ending, and the only thoughts running through the minds of Ash, Misty, Brock, Dawn and the others were that there was still much to do...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And so ends the first chapter I publish on this year! Hope you liked it... and it looks like our heroes have their work cut out for them! Next time, we'll follow Misty, Lorelei and the girls as they pursue Ariana and Proton in Chrono Island. How will it go? **

**See you next time, which I hope will be as soon as possible. Starting tomorrow, I'll be in Barcelona for a few days, then I'll be back on the 7th. And then, school will start again on the 9th... well, hope it **


	31. Into The Depths

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Hiya, guys! I'm back! Just as well, since we're just about done with Floe Island, and our bold heroes will now have to march towards Chrono and Fortune Islands in order to disrupt Team Rocket's plans!**

**This chapter will deal with the girls' group, who is now heading to Chrono Island... but as you will soon see, they aren't the only ones who are about to be on the move! An old enemy will reappear soon enough, and this time, our bold heroes may just be in over their heads! **

**Anyway, just enjoy the chapter for now... the real action is starting, though it might be a little slow at times...**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 31 - Into The Depths**

Pokeon Hunter J, one of the most notorious criminals in the Eastern continents, smiled insidiously as she watched how the other members of Team Vicious were hard at work on the damaged airship, her Drapion and her Salamence by her side. Fortunately, work was almost finished, and the terrifying vehicle that had devastated one side of Mt. Ember and had given the legendary Moltres a run for his money was now almost ready, except for a few gashes on the sides. Both the Team Vicious mechanics and the Pokemon enslaved by the organization were fixing those as well, in order to allow their leader's top mercenary to get back to her mission.

The huntress' Salamence, hearing an almost inaudible noise behind them, turned his head in that direction just in time to see the Iron-Masked Marauder, encased in his usual body armor and the golden headpiece hiding half of his face, calmly approaching, his mantle sweeping the air as he got closer. Only his black, spiky goatee, and the almost-perpetual grin on his face were visible. J felt her leader's presence herself, and slowly turned to him and bowed formally, until the Marauder gestures for her to stand up.

"At ease, J." he said, loud enough to be heard over the noise of the instruments, then he raised his glance to look pridefully at the almost-repaired flying machine. "Well, what do you think? My men have done their job as quickly as they could, and we have already found some substitute Pokemon in order to fuel the teleporting device. Considering what kind of Pokemon we have discovered in Quest Island's underground, we don't want to take any chances... especially now that Team Rocket is hot on its trail as well."

"Team Rocket, too? Well, this changes very little, as far as I'm concerned." the merciless huntress answered. In her mind, it was nothing more than a minor annoyance to be dealt with when the time would come. "Whoever stands in our path will be wiped out. As for what concerns the airship, have you also modified it like I asked you to do? This time, I want to make sure nothing is overlooked."

"Of course. That was the bare minimum, after hearing you were having to deal with those stubborn brats..." the traitorous former member of Team Rocket answered. "Just as you asked, I added to the ship a few surprised those fools won't see coming. It was not possible to add that many weapons, but those we already have will do the job well enough. The destruction these babies will be able to do is staggering, as you will see!"

"Good..." J answered, as he looked at a pair of white torpedoes hooked to the lower part of the huge airship. "I have to thank you for your aid... and I can guarantee that the next time I come across those brats, the outcomewill be vastly different."

"That's what I'd like to see myself. The Fire Plate you brought back was a good result, admittedly, but I thought I could expect something more out of you." the Marauder said, his fingers tormenting the spiky goatee hanging from his chin. "As for these improvements we did, they cost quite a bit... so, I hope you will make good use of them, and that not as many of our men will be arrested or lost."

J nodded, knowing all too well that she could not afford to underestimate her opposition this time. The Iron Masked Marauder would not be so forgiving this time around. "I know, sir... don't worry, there will be no mistakes this time, I assure you."

"Good to know." the Team Vicious leader answered. "Therefore, get ready to depart as soon as I give the order. Should we manage to get our hands on Quest Island's mysterious Pokemon, our plan will be bolstered quite a lot."

**oooooooooo**

"_Azurill! Azurill!_"

"_Mantyke, tyke, tyke!_"

Misty couldn't hold back a giggle as she watched her two youngest Pokemon, that is, her Azurill and her Mantyke, playing among the waves as they followed the motor boat the girls were on. In order to follow Team Rocket to Chrono Island, which could already be seen over the horizon, Lorelei had proposed renting a motor boat... and as they made their way to the new destination, Misty had decided to let her Pokemon have some fun as well. Now, the small manta ray was enjoying herself soaring just a little above the waves, carrying Azurill on her back as water sprayed on both her sides, from the tips of her wings. The water mouse's shrill laughter was clearly audible over the noise of the motor boat as Azurill moved his floater-like tail back and forth in order to change direction every now and then... and Lorelei, even as she drove the boat, could not help but steal a glance or two at the funny scene and smile to herself. The other girls were all sitting in the back, all of them but two of them enjoying Mantyke and Azurill's antics as well.

"Ugh... it's already hard to catch the twerps' Pokemon when we're on opposing sides..." Jessie murmured dejectedly. "Why do we have to stand them showing off right in front of my nose? At least when I'm with James and Meowth, I don't have to be constantly reminded of how often we fail..."

The other one was Ursula, who was rubbing her forehead with one hand, trying to drown out the migraine induced by the shrill screaming. "Hey, hear me out... can't you recall your Pokemon for now, please?" the drill-haired girl murmured in annoyance, glaring at Misty, who turned to the newcomer in surprise. "Your stupid little Mantyke is getting on my nerves, with all this showing off! And we're not exactly in a situation where we have time for this!"

Miyu recognized a storm brewing when she saw the signs... and shook her head as Misty took the bait and, after a few seconds of surprise, frowned and glared back at Ursula. "Say, little princess..." Misty fired back as she got closer to the rich heiress' face. "I just wanted to let my Pokemon out for a little while, they have the right to have some fun while we get there! What's so wrong with that?"

"It is wrong in my book, if that Mantyke's screaming annoys me!" Ursula was not going to take anything from a red-haired brat who was a complete stranger to her... and she was also rude and badly dressed to boot! "You should keep your Pokemon a little more in line, not allow them to do what they want!"

"I don't see how this is any of your business!" was Misty's answer.

"Come on, Ursula..." Dawn tried to act as a peacemaker between the two, though she was a little annoyed as well. Just when she was beginning to think Ursula wasn't that bad after all... "Misty just let Azurill and Mantyke out to let them have some fun, and not have them stay in their Pokeballs... and Misty, please, don't get angry so quickly!"

"I was not talking to you, Dee-Dee!" Ursula retorted, pronouncing Dawn's hated nickname in the way that caused the maximum annoyance to the blue-haired preteen... who, in fact, frowned noticeably as a vein popped up on her head! "It's a matter between me and... your little friend here!"

"Ugh... just when I was beginning to warm up to you..." Dawn grumbled, her peacemaking intentions flying out of the window. If Ursula wanted to be a jerk, she was going to be a jerk back! "What is your problem, anyway? We're supposed to be on the same side... at least for now!"

"Oh, don't bother reasoning with her, Dawn!" Misty answered with a dismissive wave of the hand. "I've known her for barely 24 hours, and I already know she'll get on my nerves for the rest of my life!"

"And if you brats keep this on... I'll get an headache for the rest of my life!" Jessie murmured.

Nose in the air, Ursula smiled cheekily at Misty. "You say that as if I should care, Red... well, don't get too cocky, because I could not care any less what you think of me! So don't go getting strange ideas..." she said. Misty, feeling her patience was nearing its limit, looked behind herself to see whether Mantyke and Azurill were keeping up with the boat... then, she tried to reach for her mallet in order to whack that insufferable snob upside the head with it!

But she was denied this satisfaction when a crescent-moon-shaped blade, belonging to an elegant and aloof-looking Absol that had just then popped out of one of Miyu's Pokeballs, got between the three young trainers, forcing them back with a yelp of surprise. The Dark-type trainer cleared her throat and, with the calmest tone one could imagine, talked the three younger trainers into setting their differences aside.

"As my Absol here is oh-so-eloquently saying..." the gothic lolita said as she stroked her Absol's warm white fur. "This is no time to start pointless fights. If you want to face each other in a Pokemon battle, you are welcome to do so, but only after we have broughtthis matter to a close. Up until then, you don't have to like each other, but you have to work together. Is that good enough?"

In the face of Miyu's tone, allowing for no reprisals, Misty, Dawn and Ursula wisely decided that the best course of action was to at least play nice for the moment, and they dropped the whole argument. Jessie sighed in relief for not having to put up with that anymore... and Lorelei rolled her eyes, while still concentrating on the brief tract of sea separating them from Chrono Island. The expedition had not exactly started on the right foot...

"Okay, girls... let's not get in a quarrel right now, okay?" the Elite Four stated calmly, though Misty was able to sense the ice in her voice. "Ursula, your comments were uncalled for, and I'd like for you to be a little kinder to Misty. Especially considering she was among the ones who saved you."

Ursula's face took a reddish tint from a combination of shame and frustration, and the drill-haired girl looked away towards the sea, while Misty allowed herself a small, satisfied smile... before Lorelei revealed to have some words for her as well. "Oh, and Misty... Ursula did have a point though. As we get closer to Chrono Island, leaving Mantyke and Azurill out of their Pokeball will mean we run the risk of getting discovered. We need to get to the Team Rocket hideout as quietly and subtly as possible."

"Er... got it..." the redhead murmured, and this time it was Ursula's turn to chuckle in amusement. Sighing, Misty leaned back and looked at her two Pokemon. "Gee, I really hadn't thought off that... what a shame, getting called out by your idol..."

A visible cloud of steam came out of Misty's mouth as she sighed, and Dawn sweatdropped in embarassment as she scratched her cheek with her index finger and giggled nervously. "Hehehee... it's not a nice thing, I can believe that..." she said. "But still... it is true that we need to get as close as possible to Team Rocket's hideout without them noticing."

"Especially when we think that this mission is personal for Lorelei as well..." Miyu stated, looking towards the horizon. "we cannot forget what happened in Floe Island that easily, can we?"

Misty and Dawn's expressions got more serious, and even Jessie and Ursula had to admit that they sympathized with the Elite Four member, who was at the moment leaning on the motor boat's commands, her eyes narrowed and cold behind her glasses. It was true... Team Rocket had ruined her birthplace, and had destroyed a place she and Lapras cared for a great deal... and while she was managing to keep her cool, Lorelei was determinated to pay them back for that!

**oooooooooo**

_(FLASHBACK)_

_"So... that's how it is..." Brock melanchonically stated as the team was standing on Floe Island's beach, surveying the damage the thawing of the Ice Cave had done to Lorelei's birthplace. The effects were evident and quite dramatic, as many inhabitants were still busy trying to take out the muddy water that had invaded both houses and roads, using just buckets, brushes and the work of their own muscles. Several of the Mediterranean forests surrounding the coast had been severely damaged by the flowing water and the excess of water in the terrain, and that was before taking in consideration the fact that several sections of the rocky hill had crumbled, and several Pokemon had lost their lives in the disaster. Luckily, all of the hostages had been evacuated, either by Ash and his friends or by Team Rocket, and now several policemen and Agent Jennies were busy handing the captured Pokemon back to the freed hostages. Unfortunately, that didn't take awayfrom the tragedy that had happened, and that caused terrifying damage to the island's ecosystem._

_"Not much to add to that, in fact..." Lance said, shaking his head mournfully, his black mantle flapping behind him. "The Ice Cave is clearly no more... and many of the Pokemon living there had to run away not to get killed with the water pressure. Not to mention the ones who couldn't get away..."_

_Lorelei, up until then, had remained silent, sadly staring at the sea... and at her Lapras, who had come out of his Pokeball to confort his trainer in that difficult moment. The tortoise-like Pokemon knew all too well how the bespectacled Elite Four must have felt. She was bitter, disappointed with herself, and seething with rage underneath her cold exterior... a mix of feelings that contrasted with her usual calm. She had never imaginedthat Team Rocket would hit her where it hurt the most..._

_With a melodic call, Lapras approached his trainer and gently nuzzled her, cheering her up a little. The young woman smiled sadly and caressed her ace Pokemon's neck, knowing all too well that Lapras was probably feeling the same as her... after all, the Ice Cave held so many memories for both of them. "Thanks, Lapras... sorry, didn't want to make you worry so much..." the Elite Four said. "I'm sure you feel terrible about this as well... I know, it hurts... we had to protect that beautiful place, and instead... I feel like I let everyone down, you included..."_

_"Laaaapras..." the graceful Water / Ice Pokemon sang, trying to confort hi trainer._

_Jessie, James and Meowth were quite upset at what had happpened as well. After all, they never wanted people who had nothing to do with that to be involved, and they were seeing what a bad idea it had been to ally themselves with people like Archer and his minions. Not to mention, they all felt like what had happened to Floe Island was partly their fault as well..._

_"Say, guys..." James meekly said to the rest of the group, trying not to look at the mud-filled town or the ruined hill. "What do you say we try and lend you a hand for once? We... er... we know a little about those guys, we've worked for them a little... and we could help you dealing with them, if you'd let us come with you. We know what Pokemon they use, and their weak points..."_

_Homura shrugged, his helmet in one hand, and his long blond hair flowing down the back of his head. "Meh... I'm afraid you guys aremaking it look easier than it is... let's not forget, you used to work for those guys, up until a few hours ago! And even if Ash and his friends here are nice enough to trust you, I certainly don't! As far as I know, you could very well be trying to make us drop our guard in order to sneak attack us or spy on us for those people. What proof do we have that your regret isn't an act?"_

_"Ugh... look, flame head, do you think we are pleased that those guys were planning on getting rid of us, and only used us to like the twerps into a trap?" Jessie exclaimed irritably, getting right in Homura's face and making him blink for a second. "If we're here now, with you, it's because we want to make those guys pay for double-crossing us! So try not to come up with such stupid ideas, okay?"_

_"Okay, okay... no time to get defensive, now!" Gary interjected. "Look, I myself am not sure whether these two buffoons and their Meowth are trustworthy..."_

_"HEY!" the trio shouted in protest._

_"On the other hand, it can't be denied that they need our help as well... and quite frankly, I don't think they'll turn their back on those who saved their lives." Prof. Oak's grandson went on. "So, I am willing to let them join us, on the condition that they don't try anything funny."_

_"And, pray tell, why would we want to try anything?" Meowth murmured. "After the stunt they pulled on us, we wanna give that Archer guy and his little friends the what-for as well! So... it's in our interest to work with you! That's before you start thinking we're doing it out of the kindness of our hearts or something..."_

_"We are chasing down Team Rocket because we want to stop their plans and keep them from harming innocent people, as well as rescue the hostages they still have with them. You have your own motives." Lance pragmatically stated. "As long as you're willing to work with us, we're willing to accept your help. Is that okay for everyone?"_

_"Well, it wouldn't be our first time working along Team Rocket..." Ash answered, adjusting his trademark hat. "As far as I'm concerned, I'm willing to trust them. Is that okay with you... Brock, Misty, Dawn... Ursula as well?"_

_"Of course it is." Brock answered. "We're facing some pretty dangerous and well-organized opponents, and we need every single bit of help we can get. And I'm still convinced that J and Team Vicious won't stay away from us for much longer."_

_Misty nodded. "That's true. I wouldn't be surprised if they were out for revenge." she stated, her hand running through her fiery red hair._

_"You sure know quite a lot of strange people, huh?" Ursula commented in a somewhat haughty tone. The spiral-haired preteen shrugged, as if telling them to ignore that last comment. "Anyway, I'm willing to tag along with you. Team Rocket did use me as an hostage, and I don't take too kindly to that."_

_"Thanks, Ursula..." Dawn stated. While she and the rich heiress were definitely not friends, she was willing to work with her as long as they had a common foe. "We really appreciate your help..."_

_"Hmph. Don't be too enthusiastic about it, Dee-Dee, I'm definitely not doing it to help you!" Ursula spoke back. "Other than the fact that I want to pay Team Rocket back, there's the fact that you did help me escape, and you found my Pokemon as well. I am not one who liked having debts with people."_

_"That does not mean we don't appreciate your help." Lorelei stated, finally free from her somber thoughts as she walked back to Lance and the rest of the team. "We're companions for now. Our objective now is to reach the Team Rocket hideouts in the rest of the Sevii Archipelago, try to find out what they're planning, and stop it by all means necessary."_

_"Alright, that will mean we will split in two groups again. One going to Chrono Island, and one to Fortune Island." Lance stated, after clearing his throat. "And if you're okay with that, we could still be split between males and females."_

_"Pikachu!" the electric mouse squeaked, before scratching his chin, deep in thought. "Pika... Pika pikachu pika, pi pika?" he asked, pointing to Team Rocket. The two clumsy criminals and their inseparable Meowth were standing near the team, looking at them inquisitively. There was no need for a rocket scientist to understand Team Rocket's problem: because of the split Lance had proposed, James and Jessie would have had to go their separate ways for a while, which they had practically never done ever since they had gotten in Team Rocket._

_"Well, Pikachu has a point, what can we do with you guys?" Ash asked. _

_Jessie decided to cut to the chase. "Oh, well... look, we'll just do whatever it takes given the situation!" she stated curtly. James and Meowth looked at her in surprise, probably asking themselves whether their companion had gone crazy, and she quickly turned to them to address their points. "Listen up, you two! I know, it's unusual for us to split, but it's for a good cause after all! We have to pay those buffoons back for trying to get rid of us! Don't worry, we'll just have to hop to these islands, blow some stuff up, and go back!"_

_"There is... a small problem with that, though... now that I think about it..." James stated, motioning for his friend and Meowth to get closer, so that Ash and his friends could not hear. "Look, guys, I still want some payback for what they did to us... but I'm afraid the boss won't be too happy if we mess up a plan that involved some of his best agents! That was something we had not considered..."_

_"Er..." Jessie hesitated before answering, understanding that James did have a point. After all, if Giovanni had sent those new executives in that isolated place, there was surely a very important motive behind it, and something that would greatly benefit Team Rocket. Giovanni surely wouldn't take kindly to it if Jessie, James and Meowth were to foil it... but Meowth, after thinking about it for a short while, snapped his clawed fingers as he came up with an idea to both have their cake and eat it!_

_"Well... hear me out, guys, I think I got it!" the feline Pokemon stated. "First off, we give those guys the what-for for having used us like Magikarp bait... and after that, we can take over from where those guys had left, and get the boss to praise us in their place! Don't ya think it's a good idea?"_

_"Well... now that I think of it... it could very well work!" James said after thinking about it for a short while. "And... well... if we managed to deliver to the boss the same thing those guys are looking for, he'd be very grateful... and he wouldn't really care who did it!"_

_"Exactly! Now you're speaking my language, Jamey-boy!" Meowth stated proudly. "Whaddya say, Jessie? You with us?"_

_"With you all the way, Meowth!" she exclaimed, before the trio stood up and turned to Ash and his friends._

_"Alright... we discussed about it for a while, and we came to an agreement!" Jessie answered, acting as a speaker for the other two as well. "We are okay with splitting up for a while and helping you out! You got a deal!"_

_"Good." Lance stated, carefully eyeing Team Rocket in order to warn them that they would not get away with anything funny. "Then... for tonight, we will rest ourselves and our Pokemon at the Pokemon Center. Tomorrow, after we have gotten our Pokemon teams ready, we'll move out as soon as we can. Try to get a lot of sleep tonight, we're in for a tiring day."_

_"Okay..." Ash answered._

_"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked, nodding as well, as each and every one of his teammates expresses their assent, mentally preparing for what lay ahead..._

**oooooooooo**

"Yeah... we have no idea what we're up against, now..." Lorelei murmured to herself as the motor boat approached Chrono Island. The island looked like a quiet, unassuming place, and above all, the citizens seemed to have built more around the water, at least with respect to the other islands. Even from that distance, it was possible to see several houses on the water... and farther away, much to Misty's surprise, a beautiful estate laying on the side of a green, flowery hill, surrounded by a lavish garden. "Well, guess we'll have to leave the boat here. Getting closer could be dangerous..."

"Alright, miss Lorelei..." Misty said, keeping her eyes on the estate, as if hypnotized. She figured it would have been a beautiful place to live, and the former Cerulean Gym Leader had to wonder who would be so lucky as to live there...

"Do you like it?" Miyu asked with a slight smile, noticing how Misty was feasting her eyes on the beautiful residence. "Truth be told, that will be more than just an estate - it will be one of the Sevii League's Gyms, under the tutelage of Lady Selphie, an eccentric rich woman who specializes in Normal-type Pokemon. I've already met her, and she's nothing to sneeze at!"

"Interesting... as soon as the League is operative, I'd like to take a look at that place!" Dawn stated. Lorelei, for her part, was lowering the boat's anchor, while Misty was recalling Mantyke and Azurill. "Alright... now we have to get to the island as stealthily as possible. Do you already have an idea, miss Lorelei?"

"There's a place, somewhere on the side of the island, where we can get in without Team Rocket noticing us. However, the coast is very rocky, so we'd better be careful with how we get close." the Elite Four stated as she produced her Pokeball. "Okay, Lapras... your turn now!"

Misty nodded as the graceful Water / Ice Pokemon appeared right in front of the boat, and the redhead let out her own Gyarados. With a grunt, the sea serpent appeared among the waves and turned to his trainer, ready and willing to listen to her orders. "Okay, Gyarados... can you take me, Dawn and Jessie on your back? We need you to get close to Team Rocket's hideout without them noticing us."

Gyarados grunted an affirmative and let the three girls climb on his back - though Jessie was understandably nervous about it - while Lorelei, Miyu and Ursula all did the same with the Elite Four's Lapras. "Okay, that's about it for now... you can come out, Vaporeon! I'm sure we will need your help as well!" Ursula said one moment later, letting out her favourite Water-type Pokemon. The mermen-like Pokemon appeared nearby Lapras, and for a moment Misty widened her eyes in admiration and giddiness at the sight of the beautiful blue-skinned creature - it was almost a pity that such a cute Pokemon belonged to such a snob, but the fact that Vaporeon seemed to have been taken care of very well did mean that Ursula had redeemed herself a little in Misty's eyes.

"Wow..." the redhead sighed. "It's such a splendid Vaporeon... that's the Pokemon Ursula used in competitons, right, Dawn?"

"Yeah... I faced that Pokemon in a competition myself..." Dawn answered. "Ursula trained him well, and he knows moves one would not expect from such a Pokemon. He's not a joking matter, believe me."

"_Eon?_" Vaporeon asked, glancing upwards to his trainer, who nodded in assent and proceeded to give him the needed instructions.

"Listen, Vaporeon, this is quite important..." Ursula said. "Stay behind us, and get ready to intervene when I give you the signal. We're about to enter a very dangerous place, and since you're the only Water-type Pokemon in my team, well... you're the logical choice for such a situation."

"_EON!_" Vaporeon answered in a melodic voice. Ursula thanked him with a slight smile, and as soon as Lorelei was sure that they were all set and ready to go, she motioned to her own Lapras to get going.

"Okay, we're all ready, Lapras!" the Elite Four told her ace Pokemon. "Now, we'll approach the caverns leading to the island's underground, and we'll try to catch Team Rocket by surprise. Take care, though, everyone... it is not inconceivable that Team Rocket has set up a few obstacles for any possible intruder, so always be on your guard!"

"Gyarados, you know what to do if that happens." Misty told her Pokemon, before turning to her companions. "Dawn, Jessie... are you ready, both of you?"

"I'm a little scared, but I'll manage! I've seen worse during my journey in Sinnoh!" the blue-haired preteen answered, trying notto think of the danger... while Jessie, on the other hand, was trying to look bold!

"Who... who do you think I am, twerp?" the fucsia-haired girl stated. "I was born ready! And... and now, let's not waste any more time, and get going! C'mon!"

Lapras and Gyarados looked at each other in confusion, as Jessie clapped her hands, trying to mae it look like she wasn't afraid at all! Then, the sea serpent shook his head in exasperation as both of them began navigating the coastline, taking care not to get too close to the jagged rocks protruding from the waters...

It took all of fifteen minutes to get to a reasonably safe place to approach the island, but luckily, the two sea Pokemon finally managed to get close to the cavern Lorelei had spoken of, a large chasm in the solid rock, decorated with sikes hanging from the ceiling and making it look like a wild beast's extended jaws. The number of emerging rocks and the strength of the waves made getting closer a dicey proposition at best, and Lapras, Gyarados and Vaporeon had to use extreme caution in getting closer to the tunnel... but luckily, in theend, they were able to reach the entrance and to get inside, their senses all set and ready to pick up any sign of danger.

"Wow... I have to say, it's quite an exciting experience..." Dawn stated, keeping her voice low as Gyarados and the others began descending into the island's bowels. "Hmm... though, I think we could enjoy it better if we could see it better... Pachirisu, could you cast a little light on the situation with your Flash attack?"

Dawn let the electric squirrel out, and Pachirisu squeaked happily before lighting up his whole body in a shining aura and casting an halo of light all around himself, acting as a living lantern. Misty and Jessie had to briefly shield their eyes from the light, but they quickly got accusomized to the small natural torch, and the team was able to continue their descent in the depths of Chrono Island, at least until the stream they were following reached a quiet subterranean lake, with three pointed rocks emerging from its center. As they looked around, they saw three more streams departing from the edges of the lake, in three different directions.

"Okay, here we are..." Lorelei adjusted her glasses as she made a resume. "But quite frankly, I don't know where to go from here on. We need to proceed with care, and... huh? Ursula, what's your Vaporeon trying to say?"

"I... I'm not sure..." the drill-haired girl answered. Her Vaporeon, in fact, had motioned for the rest of the team to wait up as he swam towards one of the streams going out of the subterranean lake, taking a look in case there was something to be careful of. After seeing that everything was under control, the graceful Water-type went back to his trainer and tried to tell her what he had seen.

"_Eon, eon! Eooon!_" Vaporeon sang, his tail pointing to the stream directly in front of them.

Lorelei's Lapras frowned a little, and motioned to Misty's Gyarados to follow him, which the huge sea serpent did with a bit of hesitation, Pachirisu still lighting the way. The team entered the stream and followed it through a seeming maze of rocky formations and awesome-looking natural wonders. Despite the gravity of the situation they were in, the girls and their Pokemon couldn't help but look around in wonder at the sheer beauty surrounding them. When the stream ended, bringing them to another lake which looked pretty much like a carbon copy of the one they had just left behind them, Misty and Dawn thought it was a bit of a letdown...

"Isn't this place a little strange?" Miyu asked rhetorically, as if she reall didn't care about that. "This lake is identical to the previous one, aside from the fact that there are more emerging rocks."

"We are running a serious risk of getting lot in this place..." Jessie stated. "We are already losing track of the right way, and if even the other lakes are similar to this one, well..."

Misty had to admit that Jessie did have a point. Had they gotten lost in that place - and they had no idea how the rest of the underground maze was like - that would have been a real problem. They needed a way to keep track of their way, or to find the right way... and it was Lorelei to think of a good idea.

"I've never been here in person... but I do remember I heard something about it." the Elite Four stated. "That is, it is possible to find the right way in this maze by keeping track of a particular characteristic of these lakes. I'm pretty sure Team Rocket's HQ is nearby the center of the island anyway."

"A... characteristic of these lakes?" a rather perplexed Dawn asked. "What might that be? These caverns look all the same to me, expect for..." she stopped cold, remembering a particular even the other girls had noticed about the lakes...

"Of course! The rocks!" Misty exclaimed, as if she could read her blue haired friend's thoughts. The two girls looked at each other in amazement and nodded. "I don't know how... but the emerging rocks are a clue that we need to take care of! If only we could understand which direction is the right one by their number, then we're set!"

Lorelei nodded, and even Ursula had to admit that it was good thinking on their part. "Hmm... well, I am not one to give out praises lightly, but... not a bad idea, in fact." the spiral-haired preteen answered. "One problem though: how do the rocks tell us where to go?"

The question made sense, and neither Misty nor Dawn had an answer to that... but before they could reason further, Ursula's Vaporeon called out in alarm, feeling that something big and dangerous was approaching! The pretty blue Pokemon howled in warning, his deep black eyes staring at the stream flowing to the left of the underground lake... and Ursula immediately understood what was going on! "Huh? This is bad, everyone! Something's coming!"

"Ouch... that means we can kiss a sneak attack goodbye!" Miyu stated. "Team Rocket will surely be alerted if a fight breaks out here, now!"

"Well, looking on the bright side..." Lorelei calmly yet coldly stated, her glasses shining the same way they did when she was getting serious about something. "They're pretty much also telling us where to go next. Our... guests... surely come from the direction in which the Team Rocket HQ on this island is situated."

Jessie and the three youngest ones of the team were quite impressed with Lorelei's calm, reasoned approach... but there was no time to praise her, as Ursula's Vaporeon jumped out of the water and in his trainer's arms, and Ursula caught him on the fly just before some menacing ripples began forming on the water, prelude to three ferocious-looking pokemon that were aiming right for the team, intending to turn the girls and their Pokemon into a quick snack! There was a deep sound of crashing waves... and out of the water came a vicious Feraligatr, joined by a Tentacruel and an Octillery, all of them ready and itching for a fight!

As Lapras and Gyarados moved backwards a little, Feraligatr roared in defiance and leapt at the huge sea serpent, only to be intercepted by a timely Thundershock from Dawn's Pachirisu, which struck the alligator Pokemon square in the chest and threw him back in the water with a pained grunt! The cavern lit up some more as the electric attack struck, and while Feraligatr thrashed about in order to try and lessen the pain from the shock, Gyarados raised his enomous tail and used it to swat away the crocodile in a perfectly-executed Aqua Tail attack! Feraligatr was thrown against the wall of the cave, and the sheer might of the impact caused a section of rocks to crumble under pressure!

"Nicely done, Misty!" Dawn cheered. "Your Gyarados is really powerful!"

"Your Pachirisu is well-trained, too!" the redhead said, winking to the blue-haired girl. "I can see you've been taking great care of him!"

"Hehehee... and if that matters, it's the Pokemon I actually defeated Ursula with the first time!" the younger girl whispered, keeping her voice low as not to offend Ursula's pride. As Feraligatr slumped in the water and, a few seconds later, began attacking once again, Jessie decided that she was not going to be upstaged by the two brats, and sent out her strongest Pokemon. "Hmph... when you two are done complimenting yourselves, get a load of this! Seviper, come! Take out that walking handbag with your Poison Tail!"

"_Ssssseviper!_" the huge snake hissed as she appeared from her Pokeball and coiled up on Gyarados' enormous body. Feraligatr was still attacking the sea serpent, his jaws widened and ready to hit with a Crunch attack, but Seviper's razor-sharp tail struck the gator Pokemon in his midsection, knocking the wind out of him, the venom causing him to feel dizzy all of a sudden. Seviper was not going to let her advantage go to waste, and her mighty coils wrapped around the huge croc's mouth, keeping him from opening it! Then, with a fluid and harsh move, Seviper tossed her opponent away and caused him to land back in the water, with a satisfying splash!

"Hohohohooo! So, twerpettes, what did you think of it?" Jessie chortled. "You better get ready! This is just a small taste of what will happen when James, Meowth and I come to catch Pikachu!"

"Again? It sure is an obsession..." Dawn shook her head and put an hand to her temple.

"Yeah, right... when Grumpigs fly!" Misty snarked as she took a look at how Lorelei and Miyu were doing - and needless to say, a couple of untamed Pokemon, even such strong ones as a Tentacruel and an Octillery, were simply no match with the Elite Four, and the Jynx she had just sent out! The strange Psychic / Ice type had stopped both opponents cold with a well-placed Psychic attack, before telekinetically slamming them upon the wall... and the gigantic jellyfish fell down in uncosciousness, before he could even aim an attack. Octillery had managed to weather the blow, and was now conjuring a huge water blast inside his suction-like mouth, which Lorelei immediately recognized as an Octazooka attack - that kind of Pokemon's signature attack.

"Now, Jynx... use Barrier!" the bespectacled girl ordered... and the Psychic / Ice Pokemon quickly obeyed, creating an invisible wall of pure psychic energy around her body, so that when her opponent shot an high-speed water bullet at her, it detonated against the invisible shield, leaving Jynx mostly unharmed and spraying everyone around in a radius of many feet! Before Octillery could get his bearings back and try another Octazooka, Ursula's Vaporeon opened his mouth and breathed out a powerful Shadow Ball attack that struck true, and pushed the octopus-like Pokemon under the water and towards his defeat! The threat had ended just as quickly as it had come.

The girls took some time to breathe out in relief as the water went back to normal. Sure it had not been an hard fight... but it was obviously just a taste of what Team Rocket could do, and furthermore, now the executives knew that they were coming, and would be ready to greet them!

"Well... guess we can resume our journey now." Lorelei stated, seemingly unconcerned. "And since Team Rocket was so kind as to tell us where to go, we don't even have to figure out which way is the right one. I've worked out how these tunnels are, and there's nothing really too complicated about them."

"Is that so, miss Lorelei?" Miyu asked, though privately she was somewhat peeved at not having had a chance to do anything in this battle.

The Elite Four nodded, and pointed at the emerging rocks... which, as Miyu just then noted, were nine in total. "As Misty and Dawn deduced, those rocks are the key to the puzzle. See? There are nine of them here, so that means the way out is in the direction corresponding to the position of number 9 on a clock. Which, incidentally, is the one those three Pokemon came from. We just need to count them, and the rest should be easy to do!"

"Awesome!" Misty exclaimed. "Then... let's go! We have to teach those Team Rocket jerks a lesson they won't easily forget!"

Her Gyarados let out a low grunt, expression his eagerness to put an end to all this...

**oooooooooo**

"What does this mean? How could they escape our trap in Floe Island?" Proton asked incredulously as he and Ariana glared at the images flashing on the screen they were standing in front of. The battle had, indeed, caused them to take notice of the intruders trying to sneak in, and now both Team Rocket executives were staring at the screen, scarcely believing what they were seeing... though Ariana seemed to be calmer about it.

"Well, they're skilled alright... no wonder the boss thought they were dangerous!" Ariana stated. "Well, no matter... they'll still take some time to reach this place, and we have got some time to prepare! Proton, make sure Lorelei and Miyu are separated from the rest... there is no way we can beat an Elite Four without overwhelming numbers by our side, but we can still take down that failure Jessie and the three brats! We will take care of them ourselves!"

"Alright, I'll make sure they get separated... our traps should be ready!" Proton said. "Though, I have to say I look forward to a good fight... been some time ever since I last sent my Pokemon out to battle!"

Ariana smirked. "You'll get your chance now... let's show those fools what Team Rocket is all about!"

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: I apologize, I feel like this new chapter is kinda crummy... I've tried to do my best, even with my own personal problems getting in the way, but I'll let you be the judge of whether I did good or not. For now, I just hope you enjoyed this little chapter... and be patient, as next chapter will see the girls in action against Proton and Ariana! See you soon!**


	32. Ariana's Tricky Traps

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Here I am! A series of problems almost prevented me from adding this new chapter today... but luckily, I managedto work around them, and now I'm proud to give you the next part of Misty and her friend's venture in the dephts of Chrono Island, as they try their best to discover what Team Rocket is up to and put a stop to them! **

**Of course, Team Rocket won't just stay put and let our heroines do what they want... Ariana and Proton, in particular, are ready to greet our heroines with their mighty Pokemon... and they're not going to go easy on them, as the Chrono Island stronghold hold a very important piece of Team Rocket's plans. If Misty, Dawn and the others can get ahold of it, Team Rocket's plans will surely take a big hit. And in the meantime, Ash and the other guys are off to Fortune Island, where Archer and Petrel are waiting for them... along with many other mysteries!**

**So, get ready for a nice confrontation! This will be an action-based chapter... and next time, we're going to switch point of view! But for now, I hope the fight will be enjoyable!**

**See you soon, and happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 32 - Ariana's Tricky Trap**

A strange, foreboding feeling.

An oppressive feeling of danger that was getting closer and closer.

Something approaching.

The Pokemon murmured some incomprehensible words in a strange language no human could possibly have understood, uneasily shifting inside the chrysalis that had been holding it for a quite a long time now, in an attempt to get free from that shell that was holding it in place. Its spindly arms fruitlessly struck the hard material surrounding it. It knew it had to get away... to run away from there as long as some time remained...

But would it... whatever it was... let it free?

**oooooooooo**

Lorelei's Lapras and Misty's Gyarados, with the group of female trainers still on their backs, had managed to navigate the watery maze, and were now in yet another underground lake... only, this one was much larger than the ones they had gotten through, a beautiful and calm place whose walls were crusted with seaweed and corals, the ceiling rising about forty feet high above them, and some beams of natural light filtering through a few cracks in the rockbed. Sometimes, a few small Water-type Pokemon, mainly Tentacool or Feebas, could be seen placidly swimming underneath them.

Following the indications given by the emerging rocks and Lorelei's intuition had proven a wise choice: that cavern was so intricate that they would surely have gotten lost, had it not been for their observation skills... and instead, here they were, only a few steps away from their target!

"Well, these islands hide more surprises than even I could ever imagine!" Miyu commented in wonder. "And to think I live nearby here... I never suspected such a baeutiful place could be hidden underneath Chrono Island."

"Well, that intricate maze we just got through has discouraged many a visitor." Lorelei pointed out. "So, it's only natural that few know of this place. In fact, I myself have to wonder how Team Rocket managed to find their way here."

Lapras and Gyarados were listening intently, their ears ready to catch any single noise as they quietly swam ashore, agitating the water as little as such massive Pokemon reasonably could. After a short while, which Misty and her companions took advantage of to admire the natural beauty they were immersed in, the two mighty Water-type reached a small beach, covered in fine white sand, on the borders of the huge underground lake, and the trainers let out a breath of relief as they dismounted. The sea tortoise and the huge serpent joined the girls as, after complimenting them on a job well done, they tried to be as unconspicuous as possible...

"Phew... here we are, at last!" Misty said, stretching her arms a little. "Thanks, Gyarados... and thank you as well, Lapras! You were great!"

"_Lapras!_" the cute tortoise-like Pokemon answered, raising one of his flippers. Gyarados, for his part, growled lightly, and his terrifying jaws cracked a smile.

"Thanks from all of us... but now, you'd better get back in your Pokeballs. We might need your help later..." Lorelei stated, stroking her Lapras' neck before recalling him. Misty did the same with her Gyarados, and the girls double-checked to see whther everything was in place before walking towards the interior of the cavern, Ursula's Vaporeon scouting ahead, searching for any hint of Team' Rocket's presence in those underground tunnels. Everything was still calm and peaceful... but all of them were too experienced as trainers not to suspect that a trap could be lying ahead.

"Gee... this place sure is beautiful, but it gives me the shivers..." Ursula stated, her hands never straying too far from the Pokeballs she kept at her side, and her eyes never leaving her Vaporeon. Of all the girls, she was the only one who had never been in such a dangerous situation, and while she was putting up a brave front, it was plain that she was nervous and worried. "And to think it all started because I decided to go to Kanto instead of Hoenn for my training..."

"Sssh! Keep that trap of yours shut, for once! You wanna get us caught?" Jessie called her out, secretly enjoying the chance to get back at the spiteful snob. Ursula wrinkled her nose, but knew better than to take the bait, and simply turned away in indignation as Miyu narrowed her eyes at the two of them. Finally, the small group was able to get closer to a bunch of pointed rocks that provided an ideal natural cover for sneaking a peek ahead. Dawn, her faithful Piplup and Ursula's Vaporeon quickly sneaked behind the rock formation, casting a careful glance ahead... and managing to see some rather recent buildings standing only a few yards away from their hiding place!

"Girls, I'm seeing something right there!" the youngest of the team whispered to her friends and not-so-friends. "Look there... don't you think that could be Team Rocket's hideout? I'm practically sure of it..."

"Let's take a look..." Misty said, approaching her friend from Sinnoh. Trying to stand out of her hiding place as little as possible, the young girl looked towards the place Dawn had pointed to... and widened her eyes in amazement: there was a large, grey building standing right there, faint and eerie lights coming out of the rare windows interrupting the dull coloring of the walls, and there were a pair of grunts, both wearing the standard black Team Rocket uniform, standing guard near the entrance, a very robust iron door that would not have been out of place in a prison! "Ouch... Man, Dawn, that's them! Team Rocket... I have no idea what they're doing here, but we must try and stop them... or Chrono Island will be in great danger as well!"

Lorelei's glasses shone dangerously for a second, a sign that it was personal for her as well... but the elite Four, faithful to her claim to fame, repressed hr first impulse to just call her Pokemon and attack the criminals that had messed up her native island. Instead, she began thinking of the right move to make. "Good. Then, let us wait and see. They surely have set up turns of guard... at the moment of changing guard, they will drop their defenses, and that's when we can strike."

"Hold on a second, miss Lorelei. We don't have to wait that long!" Ursula interjected. When Misty and Dawn turned to her, wondering what she meant bythat, the rich heiress smiled cunningly and shook her finger no. "Do not forget, we have a way to catch those people off guard before they can even call for help! Vaporeon, show them what I mean by that!"

"_Eon!_" the Water-type Eevee evolution answered. His shimmering azure scales shone brightly for a second, and the graceful creature's features faded gently... and in a few seconds, Vaporeon had become completely invisible, aside from a few ripples in the place where he was standing. Misty nodded in approval - at least, something she and Ursula agreed on! - as she recognized Vaporeon's trademark defensive move, Acid Armor, which allowed the elegant mermaid-like Pokemon to turn invisible for a while.

"Exactly, that's what I meant!" Ursula said in satisfaction. "Cool... Vaporeon, you know what to do now. Take those goons down, and check whether their little friends are preparing a trap for us!"

The now-invisible Vaporeon nodded and leapt silently out of Misty and Dawn's hiding place... and Miyu, approving of Ursula's idea, decided she might as well help out, letting one of her Pokemon out of a Pokeball. A graceful and elegant Umbreon, his midnight-black fur adorned with glowing golden rings, leapt out... and wisely dimmed his brightness in order to be able to better blend in the darkness. "Good... follow Ursula's Vaporeon, and help him out if there are problems. Make sure you don't get discovered though." Miyu instructed her Pokemon.

"_Umbreon!_" the dark creature answered, before blending in the shadow and following Vaporeon as he invisibly approached the Team Rocket grunts. Ursula wrinkled her nose, as if saying that she had no need for help... but she decided not to look at the gift horse in the mouth.

"It's not like we really needed it, my Vaporeon could manage by himself..." the rich heiress commented. "Still, I appreciate the thought. Thanks."

"You're welcome." Miyu said with vague sarcasm. Vaporeon and Umbreon slid among the shadows and managed to get near the grunts, who were casting bored glances around themselves. They were probably wondering why did they have to stand guard, as they were sure that their hdeout was safe and unreachable... and they had no idea what was about to befall them, in the form of two extremely stealthy Eevee evolutions!

The grunts only had time to hear something descending upon them before Vaporeon and Umbreon jumped out of the shadowsand smacked them upside their heads with their tails, knocking them ut and sending them sprawled on the rocky ground, two huge lumps sprouting comically out of their hats! Keeping his Acid armor active, Vaporeon approached the half-open door to the Team Rocket HQ, and sneaked a peek inside, before turning to Umbreon and motioning that the way was clear.

Lorelei, who had been observing itall from their hiding place, told her younger friends that the situation was now under their control... and as quickly as they could manage while still being tealthy, the girls came out and walked to the entranceto the HQ, only stopping to allow Myu and Ursula enough time to recall their Pokemon.

"Great job, Vaporeon! But that was only to be expected from you!" Ursula stated as she patted her champion on the head. Miyu simply scratched her Umbreon behind an ear, and he let out some kind of meowing sound before both girls recalled their fighters and followed Misty, Dawn, Jessie and Lorelei inside the base. The Elite Fourmoved one f the doors and carefully entered the place, soon finding herself inside an empty, sterile-looking corridor, dimly lit by a series of lamps hanging from the ceiling. The place looked completely deserted, and the fact that the girls knew this was not the case only made thing more disquieting... danger could strike at them any moment now...

"This place gives me the chills... do you know where can we start looking?" Dawn asked, keeping her Piplup close and taking care not to hit anything.

Lorelei seemed to think about it for a second as the team began walking along the corridor. "Maybe the best thing to do, right now, would be to split up in two groups... Miyu, Jessie and I on one side, and you three on the other. So, we will be able to quickly scout the entire place. Be careful though. We'll be more vulnerable this way, and I'm sure these people have set up several traps for us. They don't want to face us in a fair fight..."

Jessie sighed, thinking that it did make sense... the Team Rocket executives knew they were no match for an Elite Four, and they were probably going to take Lorelei out of the fight without letting her even call on her Pokemon. "Alright, let's try this... but if I fin those scoundrels who left us for dead in Flowe Island, I'm calling first dibs on kicking their butts!" she exclaimed, thirsty for revenge!

Misty and Dawn were okay with that, even if neither of them enjoyed the idea of teaming up with Ursula... but at that point, they simply had to stand her arrogance and try to be team players. Ursula herself was not thrilled at having to go with her rival and that red-headed tomboy... but she could do nothing but swallow her pride and go on.

"Alright... we'll search that way, while you keep following the stairs to the upper floor." Miyu instructed Misty, Dawn and Ursula, pointing to some nearby stairs going up a shaft. "Let's try to keep in touch, though, whatever might happen. Best of luck to you."

"Thanks, Miyu. Likewise... and no need to worry!" Dawn answered, using her catchphrase before she, Misty and Ursula got to the stairs...

**oooooooooo**

"They split up." Ariana noted, stroking at her sharpened chin. "Good... that's probably our best chance to take them out once and for all. Proton, you take care of Lorelei's group. Separate Lorelei from the other two, and you shouldn't have much trouble with Jessie and that Gym Leader wannabe. Our other men will trap Lorelei and attack her en masse, overwhelming her Pokemon with sheer numbers."

"Alright, Executive Ariana. No problem with that." Proton said in deference to the woman's higher rank. "So, you'll be taking out those three brats, huh? I'm a little envious, you kept the easier job for yourself..."

"Keep a few grunts with you, and you won't have much trouble yourself." Ariana commented with an ironic smirk. "And in any case, the important thing is that they must not reach the Sapphire before we do. You know that, right?"

"Of course. That little trinket has priority on anything, anyway... though I still have no idea what the boss wants to do with it." Proton commented. "Sure, it must be worth a small fortune, but somehow I doubt this is what the boss really wants to do with it."

"Whatever Giovanni wants, goes." Ariana was straight to the point as she picked up her Pokeballs. "For now, let's just worry about not letting it fall in those kids' hands."

**oooooooooo**

The search was beginning to unnerve Jessie. She, Miyu and Lorelei had been exploring that place for some time now, and they still had found no trace of Ariana, Proton or any other Team Rocket member... only empty, silent, darkened rooms.

"Darn it, where have those guys gone to?" Jessie said ,raising her voice only as much as she could without having anyone hear her. Even so, the walls were creating an eerie echo, and Miyu motioned to the fucsia-haired young woman not to be too loud. "Hmph... they're playing a Meowth-and-Rattata game with us... I'm sure they will leap to attack us soon enough!"

"Probably... but we don't have much choice other than push forward and be on our guard." Lorelei stated, as the trio of female trainers went through a new corridor, getting in the innermost part of the hideout. "Now, what we really need is to keep our cool... If we let ourselves..."

Lorelei was interrupted by an automatic door slamming shut behind her just as the Elite Four walked into another room, separating her from Jessie and Miyu! With a surprised yelp, Lorelei quickly turned to the door and tried to find a way to open it... but another door slammed shut on the other side of the room she was now in, effectively trapping her inside! And a second later, Lorelei discovered much to her displeasure that what had looked like a new room was actually a cleverly-disguised elevator, that began ascending and leaving Miyu and Jessie facing nothing but an empty elevator shaft!

"Aaaargh! What's the meaning of THIS?" Jessie shouted in a mixture of frustration, anger and panic. Miyu herself, while not as blatant about it as Jessie, was beginning to lose her proverbial cool, stepping away from the shaft and looking around in an attempt to find another way out. A nasty chuckle greeted the female trainers, who tuirned in the direction they had come out from not one minute earlier, and saw Proton, along with several Team Rocket grunts, standing in the doorway, a Pokeball already in his hands!

"Hehehee... look what we have here... the turncoat and the Gym Leader wannabe!" he chuckled, adjusting his hat. "I never thought I'd see you again so soon... or ever, for that matter... but I'm not complaining! So, how was our welcome committee?"

"The formallities left quite a bit to be desired, but other that that... fine, I guess!" Miyu answered sarcastically. Jessie was glaring at the rather numerous grunts surrounding the two of them, and seeing Proton among them reminded her of the treatment she, James and Meowth had suffered because of those people.

"Tch... so, you're one of those four scoundrels who tried to get us killed in the Ice Cave, right?" she asked angrily. "Glad to have you join the party... I have a score to settle with you guys! Come out, Seviper!"

Jessie let her strongest Pokemon out, and the saber-toothed adder materialized on the cold steel floor, tensing up her powerful coils and rising her razor-sharp tail like a rattlesnake intimidating a foe. Howver, Proton did not seem to be particularly impressed, and he spun a Pokeball on his fingertip as his men let their own Pokemon out.

"Oh, that's good! Someone does remember me, it seems!" he chuckled. "In fact, we didn't reallyneed you two buffoons and your talking Meowth, but you were a good way to cause those brats to waste their time, and give us a chance to get the NeverMeltIce and walk away! We had not planned for you to get out of those caves alive, but it's a mistake that's easy to rectify... go, Weezing!"

Jessie felt her heart skip a beat when Proton unleashed his Pokemon, a strange Poison-type Pokemon similar to a couple of conjoined Koffings with a distraught expression on both faces, floating in the air under the power of the gases that filled his body. It was a Weezing, the same kind of Pokemon James had four years ago, back when they were still in Kanto. To see that kind of Pokemon now was a bittersweet reminder of the past... but she quickly shook herself out of it, understanding that it was no time to be sentimental. She now had to fight that Weezing... or better say, to make sure Seviper could do it! Even Miyu had called her own Pokemon on the field - the same Absol that had broken up the quarrel between Misty, Dawn and Ursula during the trip to Chrono Island; and her faithful Mightyena, Night Sky.

"You seem to be serious about this, girls... fine then! Weezing, use Sludge Bomb!" Proton ordered. His Pokemon spat out a huge bullet of stinking, purplish mud against Jessie's Seviper, but the huge venomous snake defended herself with a Poison Tail attack, smacking back the Sludge Bomb as if she was playing baseball with it, and scattering the filthy substance around the room! Then, Seviper dashed towards her opponent, her jaws wide open and ready to bite... but Weezing eluded the attack by shooting a Smokescreen attack, which enveloped the viper Pokemon in a black, stinking cloud. Seviper barely had time to coil herself up in a defensive position, before Proton attacked again. "And now... let's heat things up a little! Weezing, use Fire Blast!"

"What? That Weezing... knows such a powerful move?" Miyu asked herself in surprise while her Absol and her Mightyena began doing away with the enemy Pokemon. Weezing opened both its mouths and summoned a kanji-shaped firey symbol in front of itself, throwing it towards the Smokescreen it had surrounded Seviper with. Jessie let out an alarmed yell, and Seviper was just quick enough to throw herself out of the smoke cloud, just in time before the Fire Blast struck it... and the reaction between the fire and the gases caused a huge explosion that blinded everyone for a split second! An hellish booming sound reverberated in the room, shaking it from its foundations, and deafening everyone as several of the closest Pokemon were thrown away! Seviper hisssed in pain and anger as she was thrown away by the sheer force of the blast... but she quickly managed to recover in midair, and while the other trainers and Pokemon had been forced to hit the floor in order not to be thrown away by the sheer force of the blast, Seviper thrust her coils upwards and landed in a guarding position, right next to her trainer! The walls of the room had turned black in several places because of the explosion, and there were debris scattered on the floor... but all in all, the situation still looked salvegeable!

"Heheheee... very nice, Seviper!" Jessie exclaimed, her dread soon turning into elation. "But that was only to be expected from a Pokemon trainer by yours truly! C'mon, Seviper, let's strike back at this guy! Use a Swagger attack!"

"_Seviper!_" the adder-like Pokemon answered. After catching her breath, Seviper turned to the floating Weezing and, before it could try another attack, her eyes lit up, shining a supernatural-looking shade of emerald green which soon surrounded Weezing as well. The gas-filled Pokemon looked confused for a while, as if not understanding what was going on... but soon after, it growled in anger and repeated its name with its raucous voice, as if understanding all of a sudden that Seviper had insulted it! With all the speed it could muster, Weezing attacked Seviper head-on with a Double-Edge attack, but the poisonous snake had seen the attack coming and managed to dodge just in time, causing it to miss the target and slam against a Team Rocket Machop, that was just them trying to blindside Miyu's Absol with a Karate Chop. The Poison-type and the Fighting-type clumsily rolled on the ground and slid upon it for several feet... and while Weezing was able to pick itself up, Machop was out cold!

"Yay, that's what I like to see! Great job, Seviper... I knew a nice Swagger attack would be useful! Sure, it enraged Weezing to the point where its attack power rose... but it also made Weezing confused!" Jessie exclaimed, explaining her simple yet effective strategy. Seviper hissed proudly and slid her forked tongue between her lips, while Proton's grin died down slightly... and Miyu's Absol executed a flawless Psycho Cut with his crescent moon shaped blade, taking out several opponents.

"That was a nice idea, indeed!" Miyu complimented her temporary partner. "But don't get cocky now, okay? The worst is yet to come!"

"Hmph. Not bad at all." Proton commented grudgingly. "I never thought you could give my Weezing a run for his money... but let's see how long you can resist!"

**oooooooooo**

Lorelei looked nonchalantly around herself as the elevator she was in stopped, and the doors slid open and allowed her to walk out... and into what looked like some sort of huge gladiatorial arena, with numerous members of Team Rocket sitting all around and glaring viciously at her. However, the Elite Four kept her cool once again and calmly took two of her Pokeballs, glaring back at the hostile-looking crowd.

"Let me guess. The welcome comittee." she coldly stated. "Either that, or a surprise party."

As an answer, all the Rocket grunts opened their Pokeball and made their Pokemon appear right in the arena, surrouning Lorelei with creatures of several types and species, though it seemed that the Poison-type Pokemon were prevalent. All the Team Rocket Pokemon, forming some sort of living wall around Lorelei, began advancing towards her... but she refused to be daunted and reacted with absolute panache.

"No surprise party, I guess." she commented. "Works for me. Dewgong, Cloyster... come out, I need your help!"

Before the Team Rocket Pokemon could aim an attack, Lorelei threw two of her Pokeballs... and once second later, she was joined on the battlefield by a huge white manatee, with short triangular fangs, powerful flippers and tail and a small horn on top of his head... and by what looked like a giant oyster, whose outer shell was filled with sharpened spikes, and whose body was black and spherical, wearing a mischievous expression on her face.

"Tch... don't be spooked by that! We're more numerous!" a Team Rocket grunt, who clearly had no idea who he was dealing with, exclaimed. "Gang up on them, they won't be able to keep up for long!"

Lorelei's glasses shone again, the Elite Four sliding into her cold, detached persona she adopted during battle. If those scoundrels really thought that numbers could avail them in such a situation, she was going to roughly wake them up to reality!

**oooooooooo**

Misty, Dawn, Piplup and Ursula were having problems of their own - once they had climbed their way up the second floor, they had found themselves lost, and were now navigating their way through the HQ in the hope of finding something that could aid them understand what Team Rocket's plans for Chrono Island were. In the end, after unsuccessfully exploring several rooms, the girls had found their way inside an unfinished corridor that ended up in one of Chrono Island's natural caves... a darkened place, filled with spectacular coral formations, that sported several signs of excavation, among which a few tables and mattocks that had been scattered carelessly throughout the place. It was strange to see such a drastic change of scenery, and as Misty motioned for Dawn, her starter and Ursula to follow her inside, she kept her eyes open and her ears perked up, just in case Team Rocket was on their tracks again...

"Boy, these people sure are organized... but what are they looking for, in such a place?" Dawn asked herself, as they went deeper and deeper inside the cave. A few old computers, still active and working, were visible on some of the tables, and there were some heavy and ponderous-looking machinery lying around... along with a strange, mystical blue brilliance coming from the opposite side of the cavern, which immediately attracted the three girls' attention. "Hold on a second, what's that I see there? It looks like someone lit up some sort of blue lamp..." the blue-haired girl stated, looking at the strange light which was dancing on the rocky walls, creating an effect not unlike ripples in the water. There was something very strange about that phenomenon... Dawn thought it was soothing, and innatural at the same time... but, and here was the strangest thing of all, there was nothing scary about it. In fact, it almost seemed like the blue light was beckoning at her and her friends (and not-so-friends) to come closer.

"Let's go check it out." Ursula said, carefully approaching the thing from which light was being emitted: there, lying half-hidden beside a huge mass of rock, was a spherical jewel the size of a grown man's fist, whose deep luminescence was bathing the surroundings, making it look like that part of the corridor was immersed in seawater. Piplup chirped in curiosity, getting close to the strange jewel and pecking it to no effect. He could only gather that some strange energy was being emitted from the bright blue stone...

Misty herself felt some strange feeling come from the artifact, as if she was staring into the deepest oceanic dephts, and she felt herself filled with wonder and dread at the same time...

"This is... so beautiful..." she murmured, as if mesmerized by the beautiful gem. She was about to kneel and touch it with her hand, but she snapped out of it at the last moment, and took a step backwards in puzzlement." "What's this supposed to be? And... what's Team Rocket planning to do with this thing?"

"I'm afraid that... thing, as you call it... will be your downfall, girls." Ariana's cold, self-assured voice broke through their reverie, and the three girls immediately jumped up in startlement before turning to the corridors they had left behind. Ariana, along with a group of Team Rocket grunts, had blocked the way, keeping them from going back the way they had come from. She certainly didn't look like she would be content with just stopping them, as Dawn read murderous intent in her snake-like eyes...

Ariana too a few slow, calculated steps forward, until she was only a few feet away from Misty and her friends. "You! You are that Team Rocket executive I saw in Floe Island! Ariana, was it?" Ursula yelled in a fit of rage.

"That's me." the female executive answered curtly. Waving her hand almost nonchalantly, Ariana opened one of her Pokeball and let out a large Vileplume, a Grass / Poison type Pokemon that looked like a purple bulb with a huge, fleshy red flower sprouting out of the top of its head, looking too large for the Pokemon to even move, and a face consisting simply of a pair of black eyes, not much bigger than coffee beans, and a small mouth. It had a pair of short, stumpy arms, and its legs were so short that it seemed that its feet were directly attached to the main body. "That gem, the Sapphire, in a cornerstone of our project, and we can't have you waltz in and take it as nothing happened. Therefore, we'll have to take you out here and now. Nothing personal, just business."

The Rocket grunts let out a few more Pokemon, mainly other Grass-types, in order to stop the girls from trying to go through them and escape, while Ariana let out a new Pokemon... this one, a huge and ferocious-looking Victreebell whose vine-like hands were shaking with anticipation. The Weepinbell evolution began crawling towards Piplup, possibly sensing that it was the most vulnerable target...

"Is that so?" Misty asked snarkily as she tried to stall for time while going through her Pokeballs. "And... what does this plan of yours consist of? You see, when I hear of some kind of evil plans that's about to be finalized, I can't help but ask..."

Ariana shrugged. "I don't know much about this myself... only our leader Giovanni knows, and I just content myself with carrying out his orders! And now, brats... defend yourselves, if you can!" she exclaimed. Her Victreebel waved its vine-like arms in the air, and threw a volley of Razor Leaves against the girls, targetting Piplup most of all and causing Dawn to widen her eyes in alarm as the little penguin looked like he was going to be struck down by the attack! Luckily, Piplup was faster than Ariana anticipated, and executed a flawless backwards roll, causing the sharpened leaves to embed themselves in the rocky ground! A Tangela, clearly bellonging to another grunt, tried to extend one of its vines and grab Ursula's wrist, but Dawn was fast to react: she sent out her Togekiss, and the beautiful Normal / Flying type slashed the Grass-type's tentacle-vine with the edge of her wing, forcing it to stagger backwards! Despite her enmity towards the blue-haired preteen, Ursula turned to her and thanked her with a nod... before grabbing one of her Pokeballs and letting out her warm Flareon, which appeared in front of Tangela in a burst of scarlet flames! The fluffy Fire-type let out a war cry and shot an Ember attack at the enemy Grass-type, unleashing a volley of dancing flames that struck the ground around Tangela, scalding it and giving Misty thetime to call forth one of her own Pokemon!

"Misty calls... Starmie!" the redhead exclaimed, letting her trademark starfish Pokemon appear in front of her... and, as fate would have it, her Psyduck popped out of his own free will and rushed forward, literally slamming upon the enemy Victreebel! Even Starmie, despite the lack of a face, seemed to be quite nonplussed about the whole thing, and the gemstone in the core of its body blinked several times to express its confusion!

Ursula blinked in puzzlement before the psychic duck's unusual way of butting in the scene, as both Psyduck and Victreebell picked themselves up from the ground... and as Misty put the palm of her right hand to her face and sighed in exasperation, Ariana frowned annoyedly and decided that it was time to go all out. "Hmph... what's with that stupid duckling, little girl? Let me show you how it's done... Victreebel, use Vine Whip! And you, Vileplume... attack with a Petal Dance!" she ordered.

"Psyduck, use Protect to shield yourself!" Misty countered. Luckily, the clumsy duck Pokemon did as he was told, creating a barrier in front of himself and blocked the whipping that the larger Grass-type was about to give it with his vine-like arms. Vileplume, on the other hand, performed an elegant pirouette on the place where he was standing, and several pink petals sprouted from his top and circled around him for a moment... before swooping down on Psyduck and Starmie, threatening to inflict them some serious damage!

"Piplup, stop them cold! Use Ice Beam!" Dawn exclaimed. The penguin Pokemon fired a freezing beam just in time, and Vileplume's petals were hit by the wave of cold and frozen in midair, before shattering harmlessly on the rocky ground. Misty smiled and gave her blue-haired friend a thumbs-up, just as Psyduck picked himself up again and prepared to attack again.

"Alright, then... Psyduck, let's do this again! Use Psybeam on that Victreebell... and you, Starme, attack Vileplume with Psychic!" Misty ordered. The starfish-like Pokemon glowed with an eerie light and sent out a wave of mental energy that struck Vileplume head-on, freezing it in place before slamming him upon the wall and letting him slide down in a daze! Psyduck, on the other hand, jumped backwards to avoid a Leaf Blade attack Victreebel was about to hit him with, and seemed to concentrate hard, as if trying to remember that it knew that particular attack... and a second later...

...he opened his beak and sprayed out an Hydro Pump attack!

"Ugh... no, Psyduck! That's not what I wanted you to.. ugh, why do I even bother?" Misty exclaimed in frustration. Luckily, it turned out well in the end, as Victreebel was hit by the powerful Water move, and while his type allowed him to weather the damage inflicted, the sheer pressure of the blow washed over him and propelled him backwards, throwing it with incredible strength against Vileplume! The rafflesia-like Pokemon, who had just picked himself up from Starmie's crushing Psychic attack, widened his eyes for a moment before being trampled by his own companion and knocked out cold, remaining sprawled upon the floor with his eyes turning into swirls!

"_Vile... plume..._" the flower-like Pokemon murmured before fainting under Ariana's disbelieving eyes.

"Well done, Misty! That'll teach her!" Dawn complimented her friend, before her Togekiss was shocked by a Magnemite's Thundershock attack! The kind-hearted Normal / Flying Pokemon squeaked and lost altitude, frantically beating her wings, but managed to stay airborne as Dawn breathed asigh of relief... and Piplup rushed to the aid of his friend, shooting a powerful Bubblebeam attack at the offending Magnemite! The Steel / Electric Pokemon was hit right on its single eye and was forced to float back, electrical sparks going off from its body every time a bubble found its mark, and Togekiss thanked Piplup with a nod and a smile before getting back to the task of taking out Team Rocket's henchmen. She lowered herself on the ground and motioned for Piplup to climb on her back... and when the penguin Pokemon did so, Togekiss soared again, heading straight for the enemy!

"Hmm... okay then, it's worth a try!" Dawn murmured to herself, before addressing her faithful companions. "Now, Togekiss... use your Aura Sphere attack! And you, Piplup... usa Aqua Jet!" An azure aura surrounded Togekiss' graceful frame, who darted towards her opponents while Piplup turned back and shot a gout of pressurized water out of his beak, acting as a propeller and pushing his companion forward with even more speed, turning both of them into a bullet-fast projectile of blue energy that shot gouts of water in all directions! The Rocket grunt shouted in fear when the powerful combo of attacks fell upon them, sending both them and their Pokemon flying through the air and land on the rocky ground in disarray... and a second later, when the dust settled, Misty and her friends could see Togekiss and Piplup fly out proudly, leaving several grunts and Pokemon lying on the ground in a stunned heap!

"Awesome shot, Dawn! Now that's good thinking!" Misty cheered.

Ursula wrinkled her nose. "Hm. Not half bad, I saw much worse than that." she commented, trying not to be too generous towards her rival. "But where did you get this strange idea from?"

"Hehehee... I really don't know myself, to be honest..." Dawn admitted with an embarassed giggle. "I kinda thought that I could use Piplup's Aqua Jet to speed up Togekiss' Aura Sphere, while at the same time creating something spectacular... and it worked! I'll have to use that in my next Grand Festival!"

The drill-haired girl sighed, wishing she had had such an idea herself. She really needed to think up a new personal trick, if she was to keep up the pace... however, she still wanted to show everyone that her Pokemon were top-notch as well, and as a show, she let her powerful Gabite out of his Pokeball! "Hmmm... well, not a bad idea, Dee-Dee, but just wait and see what I can do! Go, Gabite! Use your Sandstorm attack... and yu, Flareon, support him with Lava Plume!"

The landshark popped out of his sphere and began frantically hitting the ground with his arms, breaking up the floor and sending high-speed debris everywhere... especially upon Team Rocket's stilll-standing Pokemon! At the same time, Flareon opened his mouth and shot out a gout of boiling lava, moving his head from one side to the other so that the red-hot molten rock sprayed the debris and set them alight! The result was a spectacular rain of stone and fire that washed over Team Rocket, whose grunts and pokemon were forced to retreat among fearful screaming under the red-hot rain!

"Hehehee..." Ursula smirked, regarding her rival with a superior attitude. "So, Dee-Dee, how about this? I think that, next time we end up facing each other in a competition, the judges will be very impressed with my new combo!"

"If that's a challenge, rest assured I will find away to counter this!" Dawn challenged back with an assured smile. The two preteens, taken in by their rivalry, stared at each other for a moment, almost forgetting about Team Rocket... and in fact, there was not much Team Rocket could do, as they were busy protecting themselves from the falling ash and fire!

"Aaaaargh!" a grunt screamed, trying to put out a fire on the leg of his trousers. "Wh... What the heck, Executive Ariana! You told us it would be a cakewalk! You never told us these kids were this strong!"

"Ugh... you bunch of good-for-nothing..." Ariana muttered as she tries to protect herself and her Victreebell from the burning rain. "It's always up to me, somehow... Victreebell! Use Leaf Storm and blow this thing away!"

The carnivorous plant shrieked in anger, slightly burnt by the flames, and began creating a vortex of spinning green energy in his mouth, leaving Misty just enough time to think of a counter... and then, he fired the powerful Grass-type attack at Starmie and Psyduck, creating a green beam around which a volley of shining leaves was floating! The attack blew away the embers created by Ursula's combined attack, and Starmie reacted just in the nick of time to avoid a punishing blow, by spinning on itself like a top!

"Starmie, protect yourself with Rapid Spin!" the redhead exclaimed. Like a shuriken, Starmie launched itself at the Leaf Storm, and Ariana smirked cruelly, confident that the starfish Pokemon was not going to be able to withstand the blow...

"Hehehee... you're such a fool! I can't believe you did something that dumb!" Ariana smirked. "Don't you know that Starmies are weak to Grass-type attacks? It will never be able to break through the Leaf Storm!"

Much to Ariana's disappointment, Misty smirked back. "Surprise, surprise... I never wanted Starmie to go through it in the first place! Who do you take me for? I would never be able to become the best Water-type trainer there is if I didn't know their weak points, right?" she said. Before Ariana could do anything about it, Starmie swerved to its left and avoided the Leaf Storm entirely, before passing by Victreebell and nicking him in the side with its rotating appendages, causing him to flinch in pain! The starfish-like Pokemon landed behind Victreebell... and Psyduck, who had been forgotten in all the mess, concentrating hard in order to focus his psychic powers, unleashed a Psychic attack just in time before being hit by the Leaf Storm attack!

"Starmie, use Psychic as well!" Misty ordered. The starfish Pokemon began glowing a dangerous shade of blue, and unleashed another wave of psychic energy, catching Victreebell between two attacks he was very weak to! Psyduck's attack eradicated the Leaf Storm and, while diminished in potency, went on to hit Victreebell head-on, just as Starmie's own Psychic attack connected as well... the result was, the Grass / Poison type was sandwiched between the two bursts of psychic energy and mercilessly hammered, before being lifted up and slammed on the ground with a loud thud! Victreebell screeched and collapsed as his eyes turned into swirls, and Ariana could barely contain a swear word as her two strongest Pokemon were defeated, and the ranks of her Rocket grunts were being thinned. Now there was little preventing Misty, Dawn and Ursula from getting the Sapphire themselves... but Ariana was not going to give up without at least trying to salvage things!

"Ugh... this is bad! Someone get the Sapphire, before they get ahold of it!" she ordered, and a grunt with a Bellsprout, one of the few enemy Pokemon left standing, ordered his fighter to use Vine Whip to grab the mysterious jewel. Unfortunately for him, he still had to deal with Misty and one of her Pokemon, which she quickly released from her Pokeball.

"You're not going anywhere with it!" the redhead exclaimed. "Mantyke, grab that gem!"

"_Mantyke!_" the small manta ray exclaimed, her wing-like fins extended as she glided hapily through the air. With a swoop, she slapped Bellsprout's Vine Whip away using a Wing Attack, and as the Grass-type retreated with a pained yelp, she grabbed the jewel between her fins and flew up again, her tail raised intriumph as Piplup, Togekiss, Flareon and Gabite all celebrated the win!

"Yay!" Dawn cheered. "Awesome job, Misty! Well done, Mantyke!"

Ursula smirked triumphantly at Ariana. "Hehehee... so, gentlemen... what will it be?"

Ariana knew when she was beaten, and this was exactly the case. "Tch... just what we didn't need... they got the Sapphire!" she muttered as she recalled her defeated Vileplume and Victreebell. "Useless... let's just retreat! The day is lost, at this point! We can just hope Archer and Ptrel were luckier than we were! Let's get out of here, all of us!"

"Careful! They're trying to get away!" Ursula warned, still unsatisfied of the beatdown they had inflicted upon Team Rocket. She was about to order her Flareon and Gabite to cut off Ariana and her men's escape route, but Misty and Dawn thought otherwise.

"That doesn't matter... for now, what's important is that we've managed to damage their plans enough!" Misty said. "Now, we need to find miss Lorelei and the others, and get out of here!"

"She's right... we can be content with what we've got!" Dawn agreed, as each Pokemon returned to their own trainers, and Mantyke gave Misty the Sapphire, earning herself a smile and a gentle stroke on the back...

**oooooooooo**

"Dewgong, Cloyster... both of you, Aurora Beam!"

Despite being a little winded from the protracted battle against a veritable horde of enemies, the seal-like Pokemon and the giant oyster charged up for a second before shooting a pair of multicolored freezing beams at their opponents, which struck the few remaining Pokemon and encased them in blocks of solid ice, with surprised expression literally frozen upon their faces!

"And that's all. Great job, you two!" Lorelei complimented her two Pokemon, who were still smiling despite being fatigued, proud to have proved themselves to their trainer once again. A sudden alarm siren warned them and Lorelei, as Team Rocket recalled their downed Pokemon and began running for it, leaving their tired but victorious opponents in the middle of the arena.

"It seems to me that the other girls did a good job as well, to send Team Rocket running like that." Lorelei commented. "Fair enough. Dewgong, Cloyster, let's go back and get out of here. I'm pretty sure Team Rocket won't bother with this island any more."

**oooooooooo**

"Weezing, Body Slam!"

"Seviper, Poison Tail, once more!"

The two Pokemon violently clashed against one another, and Seviper's envenomed tail struck Proton's Weezing between the eyes, breaking its stride for a split second before the massivefloating Pokemon pushed the adder backwards, tossing her to the ground in a tangle of coils that picked herself up a few seonds later. Seviper hissed angrily and got ready to strike again, shaking her bladed tail...

But the evacuation call echoed in the room before the two of them could resume their fight, as Miyu and her Absol and Umbreon mopped up the last remaining grunts. Sighing in annoyance, Proton recalled his Weezing, and the gas-filled Pokemon disappeared in his Pokeball after glaring at Jessie and her Seviper, promising them that there wold be a rematch.

"Tch... looks like you get away easy this time, rugrats..." Proton sneered. "But next time, you won't be so lucky! Count your blessings, because they're going to end soon!"

"W-what do you mean? Who are you calling a rugrat, you old coot?" Jessie exclaimed, taking offense at the term. Proton did not even stop to answer her, and turned tail, his men following him suit... and Jessie was left to sputter in indignation! "Arrrgh! Will you look at him, just running away like that! Gah, it annoys me to no end..."

"_Seviperrrrr..._" the adder Pokemon hissed, not liking the idea of having to postpone the outcome of that battle. However, Miyu calmly pointed out that those things could wait until later.

"You'll get another chance at him later." she said, her Absol and Umbreon by her side. "For now, we'd better get a move and run away from here. Lorelei and the others should be out of this place, by now..."

"Alright..." Jessie sighed in resignation, motioning for Seviper to come with her...

**oooooooooo**

That evening, as Chrono Island continued its everyday life without anyone the wiser about what had happened below the surface, a Lapras and a Gyarados were sailing towards the open sea, bringing the six girls who had just fought their way througn the many traps of Team Rocket's hideout. One of them was holding on to the gem they had managed to snatch away from Team Rocket, and was now showing it to Lorelei as Lapras and Gyarados were swimming side by side.

"There it is, miss Lorelei... we found this strange gem in Team Rocket's hideout, and we think it might be very important to Team Rocket's plans." Dawn was explaining to Lorelei, while casting a glance at Jessie from time to time. The blue-haired girl could see how Jessie was glaring at the precious gem... "We have no idea at all what they were going to do with it... but I'm sure it's rather important to their plans."

"Furthermore, I get a strange feeling every time I as much as look at it..." Misty added, remembering what had happened in the underground tunnels...

The Elite Four looked at the strange gemstone with interest, adjusting her glasses. "Hmmm... that's a pretty peculiar sapphire, in fact... they obviously want to make use of it for something sinister, like with the NeverMeltIce... but for now, the fact that we have it means that we can rest easy of that, at least." she affirmed. "Okay... then, as soon as I get a chance to, I'll conduct a few studies on this sapphire... for now, we should go back to the boat and seek a place where we can spend the night at... tomorrow morning, we'll sail to Quest Island, hoping that the guys have had the same luck as we did..."

"Yeah..." Misty answered hopefully, her heart going out to her friends, and to Ash in particular... she was hoping that they had managed to throw a wrench in Team Rocket's plans as well.

"Alright... next stop, Quest Island... right?" Ursula concluded with a sigh. "Fine by me. The sooner we sort out this mess, the sooner I can get back to my training journey. And I still have some pent-up rage to vent on those scoundrels..."

"_Lapraaaaaas..._" Lapras emitted his melodious call, as he and Gyarados continued on their way, bathed in the orange light of the dusk...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Despite technical difficulties, I was finally able to update this! The battle against Ariana and her minions was rather hard, but Misty, Dawn and Ursula managed to pull through in the end... and once again, Lorelei proves that she's a force to be reckoned with!**

**This chapter was a bit tough for me to write for another factor: I had to keep Lorelei out of the main fight. Her Pokemon team is much stronger than any of the other protagonists', and if she faced Ariana, the battle would have been far too easy for our heroines. In fact, I wonder if, despite this, I didn't make things too easy on them without meaning to...**

**But anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! See you next time with Chapter 33, where we will get to see what Ash, Brock and the other guys are up to! See you as soon as I can update again!**


	33. The Island Of Ruins

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Hello, everyone! Again, I'm really sorry for the delay, but real life has been a cruel mistress once again, and I also felt compelled to write other stories in the meantime... but finally, I am able to update this story, switching the point of view to Ash and his friends as they arrive in Fortune Island!**

**In last chapter, we saw how Misty and the rest of her team managed to thwart Team Rocket's schemes in Chrono Island, and got a hold of the Sapphire Team Rocket was after... which admittedly did throw a rather big wrench in Archer's plans. However, now we have to see whether Ash and the boys will be able to do the same. Team Rocket has quite probably wised up to the fact that they're not dealing with pushovers, and they need to step up their game if they hope to achieve their plans...**

**We're almost at the end of the Sevii Islands arc, and we've almost reached the deciding battle! Stay tuned, I'll do my best not to disappoint!**

**And enjoy the new chapter! **

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 33 - The Island of Ruins**

"Hmm... what can I say, things have gotten rather interesting, wouldn't you agree, Domino?" Giovanni asked rhetorically as he watched the images flashing on his computer's flat screen with amused interest. Thanks to the micro-camera the young spy had placed on Ash back on Knot Island, the Team Rocket leader was able to follow the Sinnoh champion's movements by simply sitting at his desk, in his richly furnished office.

Giovanni's Persian meowed lazily, licking himself with great care in order to make his luxurious fur shine... but Domino was not fully convinced that things were under control. "Well, sir, it is not my place to say, nor do I want to doubt your judgement... but shouldn't we do something about Jessie, James and Meowth? At the moment, they're helping those nosey brats with messing up our master plan... in other words, they just revealed themselves for traitors that should be dealt with."

Giovanni chuckled cruelly, almost but not quite dismissing his top spy's worries. "Hehehee... it is clear that you don't know those bumbling fools as well as I do, my dear Domino!" he stated. "No, they would never betray Team Rocket... they just want to get their revenge on Archer and the others for what they pulled in Floe Island, and quite honestly, I cannot blame them for wanting to do so. We will of course keep an eye out for them, but... as long as we can get the NeverMeltIce and those three gems, I don't really care about the rest. They'll be returning to me soon enough, and ask for a second chance, after this! Speaking of which, Domino... when are Cassidy and... Biff, or whoever her partner is... coming?"

"I think his name is Bill, or Buffy..." Domino said, rubbing her chin. "Anyway, they should be here pretty soon. We just have to be patient and..."

There was a knock at the office's door, and the Team Rocket don raised his head to give the newcomers permission to enter. "Heh, speak of the devil... Now, come in, you two!" he said, and the door opened with a slight creaking sound, allowing two people wearing the black Team Rocket uniform to enter: they were a young woman about Jessie's age, with long light orange hair tied in a pair of ponytails, wearing a pair of red triangle-shaped earrings, and with a somewhat arrogant tilt to her head... and a rather nondescript man about her same age, with azure-green hair. Both of them bowed to their leader, and stood at attention in front of him. There was a certain sense of excitement about them, and the fact that they were being given a mission by the leader of Team Rocket himself was clearly a cause of joy for them both.

"Cassidy and Butch reporting in for duty, sir!" the girl exclaimed. "We came as soon as we could... please tell us, do you have any mission to entrust us with?"

Giovanni smiled ominously as he rubbed his shaven chin, and grabbed a few documents lying on his desk. His Persian, who had hoped to use those sheets of paper as a cushion for a nice nap, wrinkled his nose in annoyance, but soon shrugged it off and went on to look for another place where to catch some shut-eye. "Yes... I see that my new executives are doing quite a good job in the Sevii Archipelago, and I can be satisfied of how things are going, for now." the evil mastermind stated. "Still, I am in need of trusted people to keep an eye on other continents as well. Therefore, you will be assigned to the Hoenn division of Team Rocket in order to keep an eye on the situation there... and most of all, to keep control of several sites that will be of great interest to Team Rocket! Also, I heard that there has been an increase in activity from Team Vicious, the newly rising criminal cartel and our most dangerous rivals in that area after the defeat of Teams Aqua and Magma. You'd better keep an eye on them, you never know what they might pull."

"You can count on us, sir!" Butch answered without hesitation. "We'll go to Hoenn and complete the mission no problem! We won't disappoint you like those fools Jessie and James!"

"Glad to see you're confident, Bill." Giovanni answered, causing the young man's grin to fade immediately as his name was gotten wrong for the umpteenth time. "Now, I just hope you can put your money where your mouth is. Fine, you'll depart for Hoenn with the first available ship sailing from Vermillion City Harbor. Start packing right now, this is a mission that can't wait."

"Right away, sir!" Cassidy exclaimed, doing another salute.

"Sure thing, sir..." Butch murmured, somewhat less than enthusiastic about it. "You can count on us... but still... er... my name would be Butch, sir..."

"Whatever. Still, these are the orders. Do a good job of it, and you might even get the promotion that's always eluded you. I hope you know how to play your cards well." the Team Rocket don concluded, giving Domino a sideways glance when the blonde girl seemed to be about to object. The young spy shrugged her shoulders and decided to keep quiet about it for now, while Cassidy and Butch politely excuses themselves and walked away.

"That's alright, sir! We'll depart for Hoenn as soon as everything is ready! Thank you for the trust you're giving us!" Cassidy exclaimed, before the two of them disappeared behind the door to Giovanni's office...

**oooooooooo**

While Misty, Lorelei and their team were busy fighting their own battle in Chrono Island... in another part of the Sevii Archipelago, a majestic group of mighty winged Pokemon was taking their trainers towards their new goal, under a burning tropical sun that just seemed to grow hotter by the hour. Even so, the feeling of the wind blowing in his face, as he and Pikachu held tightly to Charizard's massive back, was enough of a relief for Ash Ketchum... especially since he was travelling with the excitement of seeing a new island in that magnificent tropical archipelago, and of facing a new adventure along his friends...

"_CHARRRR?_" Charizard asked as he carried Ash and Pikachu with no apparent effort. Understanding what his faithful Fire / Flying Pokemon wanted to say, Ash gave him a thumbs-up before answering.

"I'm A-OK, Charizard!" he answered, taking just a moment to put his hat back in place so that it wouldn't be blown away by the wind. "You have no idea how much I missed travelling with you... it kinda feels like I went back in time!"

Besides Ash and his Charizard, one of Lance's Dragonites and his Aerodactyl were soaring: the prehistoric Rock / Flying type had Gary and Brock riding on his back, while Dragonite was carrying Homura and Lance himself, while Team Rocket's infamous Meowth-shaped hot air balloon was following them from close behind. However, it just wasn't the same thing with just James and Meowth riding upon it, and the two of them seemed to be aware of it too...

"That's, like, the first time we end up travelling without Jessie ever since we began chasing after Pikachu..." Meowth noted, scratching the edge of the basket absent-mindedly. "Sigh... I have to say, when she's not with us, there's something amiss. I can't exactly say what, but Team Rocket just isn't the same without her..."

"Yeah, you can say that again." James said, rubbing his head. "We've been together for so long that I already feel strange when she's away for longer than a few minutes... I just hope she and the girls are doing okay..."

"Well, ya know how Jessie is... If I were you, I'd be more worried about those scoundrels who tricked us back in Floe Island!" was Meowth's snarky answer. "Ya'll see they will be very sorry for what they pulled, after Jessie's done with them! What we have to think about now, is make sure the guys we'll end facing here on Fortune Island come to regret it as well!"

James sighed. It was no secret how he had never been the most aggressive of the three, and he wasn't sure about a direct attack being effective... "I just hope you're right about that, Meowth... cause I've only got my Carnivine, my Mime Jr. and my Slugma with me... and Slugma is freshly caught too! I just hope it's enough..."

"Don't worry, we do have Mr. Strange Hair backing us up..." Meowth answered, his large eyes casting a glance at the Dragon Trainer, on the back of his fiery Dragonite. "With the Pokemon he has, I don't think anyone will be able to do much against him."

Time passed as the team continued on their journey through the Sevii skies... until Aerodactyl's keen eye caught an island emerging from the seemingly endless sea just below them, a tract of rocky and harsh earth that was, without doubt, Fortune Island itself! With a keening screech, the prehistoric flying reptile warned Charizard and Dragonite, then began slowly approaching their target.

"What's up, Charizard? Did Aerodactyl see anything?" Ash asked, as he and Pikachu held tighter to the fire-breathing dragon's back. Charizard grunted in confirmation, as Dragonite joined him and Aerodactyl in their slow and wary descent towards the island, looking for a good place where to land without running the risk of being seen.

"Here we are, everybody... this is Fortune Island, a real haven for researchers and ruin explorers!" Homura said, pointing to the rocky island just below them. "And as of now, it's an hideout for Team Rocket... In usual conditions, it's a great tourist attraction, especially for history fanatics, considering there are many interesting historical relics in this place... and I even heard that the sight of the night sky is truly amazing here! You can see the most star-filled sky in all of Sevii... no artificial light, no noise... in other words, it's a great place to live in!"

"I'd really love to have a better look at it, as soon as we have more time..." Brock said, leaning just a little from Aerodactyl's back to enjoy the view. "It's a pity we won't be here for long... just as long as we need to stop Team Rocket..."

"That just means we'll enjoy our time here as much as we can!" Ash answered, optimistic about the whole deal as always. "For now... Lance, do you happen to know where Team Rocket might be hiding? This place is pretty darn big, and we'd need to at least have an inkling of where to look for them."

Even for that altitude, Fortune Island was obviously a large and mostly unexplored place, with respect to the other islands Ash had seen in the Sevii Archipelago. There was a city surrounded by a huge canyon, only facing the sea in a small tract of land in its north-east corner, that stood out among the many rocky formations and plateaus under the burning sub-equatorial sun; in the northmost part of the island, separated from the mainland by a large stream of water, stood what looked like a larger plateau, dotted with ruins and the remains of ancient buildings. Fortune Island truly came across as a fascinating and mysterious place, and Ash had no trouble believing that it was a place of interest for many history fans. He asked himself just how excited Professor Oak would have been if he had seen that place...

Of course, even without the professor being present, the Oak grandson looked quite interested in those ruins as well. "Man, this is quite an awesome place!" Gary commented from Aerodactyl's back. "I'll have to remember to pay a visit to it, as soon as this mess is sorted out!"

Lance chuckled, understanding the young resercher's point of view. "Yeah, I can see that. Even leaving aside the fact that Fortune Island is the largest island in the Sevii Archipelago, it's also the one with the greatest number of historical sights. We still don't know exactly what kind of civilization used to live in this place, and scientists from all over the world periodically gather on this island to do research. Whatever is hidden in these ruins, it must be very interesting... and it is not inconceivable that they might let us discover new things about the origins of our world, and of several Legendary Pokemon."

"In other words, this island might actually hold the key to understanding the very origin of all Pokemon! If that's not great news, I have no idea what is it!" Homura said. The island was getting closer and closer now... "Hmm, alright, let's see where we could land... that clearing right next to that ancient temple looks good to me, what do you guys say? It's rather well-hidden, at least."

The team looked at the place that the Fire-type expert was pointing to... a dry, sun-scorched plateau upon which a Greek-type temple and several other unidentifiable remains were standing, along with a few small trees who had obviously adapted to the harsh climate. The three Pokemon nodded in unison and started to descend faster, while James and Meowth lowered themselves towards the ground; a few minutes later, the team was descending right in front of the temple... an ancient building made of white stone, encrusted with the ravages of time. Taking care to choose a placewhere they would be hard to spot, by making use of both the temple's position and the nearby rocky walls, the Pokemon finally landed and let their riders climb down.

"Wow... man, after all that flying, my legs are really hurting!" Ash said, moving his aching knees. "Thanks, Charizard... thanks, everyone! You''ve been a great help!"

"_Charrr..._" the red dragon growled softly, proudly unfolding his wings as Ash scratched him on the head. After everyone had thanked the Pokemon, and Ash and Lance had recalled them, the guys began looking around, in order to decide what the best thing to do would be.

"Alright... now that we've gotten here, I guess the first thing to do would be to find out where our... er... colleagues are hiding, right?" James asked, looking around in puzzlement as he and Meowth tried to take cover from the burning sun.

"Exactly... and if you want my opinion, I don't think looking around here would be such a bad idea." Lance answered, his eyes wandering around the shrine they had landed in front of. "As I said, this island has a lot of interesting secrets, and I wouldn't be surprised if we found something about Team Rocket by simply taking a look around."

"And if we're really lucky, we might find some poor shmuck to question." Homura answered, a Pokeball ready at his side. "So... what are we waiting for? Let's go give those scoundrels the what-for!"

"Hold on a second, Homura, we'd better be careful..." Brock answered, letting one of his most recent Pokemon out. "Gible, it's your turn. Take a look around, and tell us if you see something interesting."

Brock's Pokeball opened and let out the small landshark / dragon hybrid, who opened his mouth wide and let out a mighty yawn, then turned to his trainer and raised an hand to tell him he was ready. However, Brock was quite surprised to see him bend down on the ground to grab a small peeble... and swallow it like it was some sort of candy!

"Er... sorry, guys, looks like my Gible needed to have a snack..." Brock said with some embarassment. However, Lance really didn't really seem to mind the Dragon / Ground type's unusal behaviour, and instead seemed to be more interested in the fact that the former Pewter City Gym Leader actually had such a rare Sinnoh specimen.

"A Gible? Not exactly the kind of Pokemon you see everyday..." the dragon tamer said as he examined the small Dragon / Ground type with clear interest. For his part, Gible limited himself to glance back at Lance, as if he was trying to decide whether his cape was good eating.

Brock reminded himself about how a few mysteries about Gible had not been solved yet. "Well, truth be told, I captured him during the last leg of our journey in Sinnoh. Or rather, it was Gible who allowed himself to be caught." he stated. "And even then, it was clear to us that this little guy had some strange power. When we are done here, I would like to discuss it with you, Lance..."

"Dragon-type Pokemon are my field of expertise." The Kanto and Johto champion answered. "Therefore, feel free to ask me whatever you want. I'll answer to the best of my abilities."

"Thank you very much." Brock answered. "Now, getting back to us... okay, Gible, could you go take a look at that shrine? Just to make sure there are no nasty surprises in store for us..."

"_Gible gible gible!_" the drake Pokemon answered, happily marching towards the entrance of the shrine, a rectangular-shaped doorway placed under a greek-style roof. After climbing the stairs without any apparent effort for a creature that small, Gible hid behind one of the columns for safety... and then, seeing that nothing dangerous was ahead, he pretty much hopped into the shrine, the rest of the team following shortly.

The innermost part of the temple was just as barren and ruined as the outside: nothing had remained save for a white stone altar on the opposite side of the room, with a few stairs going up in front of it, and a few square windows carved into the stone walls, allowing the rays of thesun to enter. Gible looked around, noticing nothing out of the ordinary... but soon after, his keen sense of smell picked up what seemed to be an unfamiliar human scent, and he immediately snapped on alert. Just as Ash, Pikachu and the other entered the shrine, the vivacious Dragon / Ground type began following the track towards the dusty altar.

"_Pikachu?_" Pikachu squeaked, wondering what the small dragon was trying to do. The electric mouse and his trainer preceded the rest of the team and followed Gible to the altar, stopping right in front of it when the landshark began sniffing the calcareous stone. "_Pika pika chu, pika?_"

"_Gible, gible!_" Gible exclaimed as he pointed to the base of the altar. Now that Ash and Pikachu were close enough, they could see that something had been carved on the altar, in a strange alphabet that reminded the two lifelong friends of the Unown, the mysterious Psychic-type Pokemon that were somehow connected to numerous legends, especially in the Johto continent...

"What's the matter, Gible? Have you found anything?" Ash asked, kneeling near the newcomer in Brock's team. The drake nodded in assent and kept indicating the bottom part of the altar, trying to say that there was something very important there...

Lance and Brock got there as well, and the dark-skinned boy began taking a good look at the white marble floor, while Lance began reading the writing on thealtar, trying to make sense of whatever was written. "Hmmm... seems to me we're in theright place, after all." the dragon tamer commented. "This writing does say something interesting... _Three lights on the border of the world... The elements to bind them... emotions to overcome hardships... _Hmm... and the rest is unreadable."

"Three lights on the border of the world, huh? That's one impressive-sounding quote, a pity that its meaning is so unclear." Gary commented. "And about this emotion thing, what do you think it refers to?"

James felt like a fish out of water. "Sigh... and here I thought we could do without legends, profecies and such for a while..."

Ash tried to think about it, and snapped his fingers as he realized something. "Hold on a second, I have a hunch about this! Could it be that 'emotion' refers to Sinnoh's Lake Trio, Azelf, Mesprit and Uxie? And maybe, by extention, to Dialga, Palkia and Giratina as well..." he ventured. "After all, those Pokemon were very important for Team Galactic's plans as well."

"That does make sense. Which would imply that a lot more is at stake than what we might have assumed at first..." Brock commented, trying to hide the worry in his voice. "Aside from this, there is something strange about the floor. Look at this part in front of the altar."

The young Pokemon breeder passed the tip of an index finger on the marble floor and showed it to the others, revealing to have picked up surprisingly little dust. Then, he did the same thing on another part of the floor... and this time, the tip of his finger became covered in dirt, which Brock wiped away. "See? A part of the floor is tidier than the rest, and I don't think they have maids doing the cleaning here. Furthermore, this cleaner part of the floor looks like it's not fixed to the rest. As if it could actually move."

"It's true…" Gary confirmed, feeling the floor with his hand and finding a suspicious gap between two tiles. "And Gible has followed a scent all the way here. This must mean something."

"That obviously means Team Rocket has recently been here…" Homura concluded, taking a look at the stone slabs. "If only we knew where they have gone from here, maybe we could reach their hideout. Aren't there any buttons or something on this altar?"

"_Pikachu…_" the electric mouse squeaked as he began feeling the stone slabs in order to see whether they could be hiding something. After a few seconds, he managed to find what looked like a marble button on the altar's side, and when he pushed it, Ash suddenly felt the floor beginning to move under his feet! He quickly jumped away with a surprised yelp, but he still ended up sitting quite unelegantly on the floor, while his companions simply sidestepped! In the place where Ash had been standing, the marble floor had retreated, and in its place there now were several stairs leading to a narrow underground tunnel… clearly a secret passage leading to what was probably an important place!

"_Gible, gible!_" Brock's Gible exclaimed, hopping up and down while pointing to the darkened corridor. He could feel the unfamiliar human scent getting stronger already.

"Hmm… I know I'm pointin' out the obvious, but he's sayin' we should go down there and follow that corridor." Meowth stated. "I sure dunno about ya, but that place makes my fur stand on end. Are you sure it's a good idea?"

"Well, we have no idea where it will take us…" Homura answered with a shrug. "But we won't make any progress unless we take a few chances, will we? So, with your permission, I'm going in!"

"Hold on a second..." Lance tried to warn him, but the aspirant Gym Leader had already gone and was walking down the stairs. The dragon tamer shrugged and followed suit, motioning for the rest of the team to do the same. "Well, it's not like we have much choice right now... Let's just follow him and hope he doesn't get into trouble. In that corridor, I won't be able to send out most of my Dragon Pokemon, so we're at a bit of a disadvantage."

"I just hope there won't be any problems." Ash answered. "Our Pokemon should be more than enough to face a few grunts. I just hope we won't run in those executives, because those might be real trouble..."

"I have no problem believing that..." James replied, as the team began following Lance and Homura in the secret passageway...

**oooooooooo**

In the meanwhile, in a well-hidden chamber in the underground of Ruin Valley, the greatest archeological site in Fortune Island, Archer was working on a report he was soon going to have to send to his boss Giovanni regarding the operations that were being carried out in that part of the island. Still, the Team Rocket executive was hardly worried at all. At least for the moment, things were going exactly as planned, and the digging was doing quite well. Sure, there had been a few inconveniences, such as a few curious tourists that had tried to sneak in the site... but it hadn't been a problem for his men, who had quickly chasen away all possible disturbances. As for the present situation, between the trainers they had captured and the newly-acquired artifacts, there had been a slowdown, but even that wasn't such a big problem, after all. The NeverMeltIce was now in their hands, and another part of Team Rocket's plot was soon to be finalized.

As Archer continued compiling one sheet after the other, he heard a knock at the door of his office, and the Rocket executive raised his head to answer and give permission to enter. He was not surprised to see that it was his direct subordinate, Petrel, coming to update him on the latest happenings.

"I apologize for the disturbance, Executive Archer!" the violet-bearded man saluted while Archer lay the pen down by his side. "Group C has just informed me, without any room for error, that the Ruby has been located in the Excavation Site C. It is only a matter of time before it gets unearthed."

Archer's grim face was crossed by a satisfied smile. "Excellent. Now these are the good news I was looking forward to." he answered. "Alright, then we'll wait for Group C to unearth the gem, then we'll make all the needed preparatives and leave this place. Any news from Quest Island? Are Attila and Hun doing a good job entertaining our... guests?"

"There don't seem to be any problems there as well." Petrel calmly answered. "And even the search for the Emerald is going smoothly. Optimistically speaking, we should be able to rendezvous with Ariana and Proton very soon, and then we'll go back to HQ."

"That's perfect. Giovanni will be proud of us!" Archer stated victoriously. "With this operation coming to a close, Team Rocket will be majorly bolstered, and we'll soon get our hands on a bunch of new and powerful Pokemon. Our army will be able to stand up to that of any other organization in this world... yeah, despite a few slip-ups here and there, things are firmly in our camp!"

Petrel laughed jovially. "I don't think I could've said it better myself, Executive Archer!" he stated, before being interrupted by the beep of the comm device hanging at his side. Somewhat surprised at the fact that there were updates so soon, he answered the call. "Huh? Yes, Petrel here. Security, is that you? What's going on? Hm... yeah... the Dotted Cave? Yes... I see... okay, I'll send a squad to take a look at it. We'll see what we can do from here. Okay... keep us updated..."

The conversation was interrupted, and Petrel turned to his superior to answer his unspoken, yet still clear, question. "It appears something is not going as planned, Executive Archer. The Pokemon trainers we faced in Floe Island have managed to survive, and they're on their way to our hideout as we speak. It appears they've located the secret passage to Ruin Valley, and they should arrive at the Dotted Cave shortly. They have Lance, the champion of the Kanto and Johto leagues, with them."

These news actually had Archer worried. "That is a problem..." the Rocket executive said. "None of us is even close to a match for Lance, and if we were to be defeated here, it would be a severe setback for Team Rocket. We must try and find a way to both stop them and get away with the Ruby, before they can do too much damage. Petrel, order all excavation squads to give aid to Group C. Also, have all security squads do a check of the area surrounding the Dotted Cave. Lance might be too tough for us to handle, but we can still cause him to waste time..."

"Acknowledge! Leave it to me!" Petrel answered, before getting out of the room as fast as he could. Archer sighed and went to retrieve his Pokeballs, hoping that his contingency plan would work an buy them some time...

**oooooooooo**

"Aaaand... we finally got out! Say, guys, think they've prepared a welcome committee?" Homura asked rhetorically, pointing to a ramp of stairs going upwards, right at the end of the corrridor they were walking through. It had taken them several minutes to go through all that way, and Ash couldn't say he didn't look forward to reach their destination. He was beginning not to stand the heat and humidity any more!

"_Pika pika..._" Pikachu answered, shaking his head. Sometimes, Homura reminded him far too much of Ash at his most impulsive... but the electric mouse thought he probably had to expect it from someone whose speciality were Fire-type Pokemon.

Brock's Gible, on the other hand, seemed to be anxious to start a fight, and grabbed his trainer's trousers, trying to pull him along. With a good-natured smile, the dark-skinned young man told his Dragon-type to be patient and not to rush headlong. "Just wait a moment, Gible... before we step forward, we need to be sure that there are no traps ahead..." he said, as the team slowly approached the exit of the corridor.

Lance walked out first, a hand always ready at his belt in order to call on one of his dragons in case of trouble. The team had emerged in a rather strange place: it was a narrow room built in large stone bricks, and completely barren except for a few strange writings on the wall on the dragon tamer's right. Lance walked out of the passage and up to the writings, trying to read them... and soon realized that there was something very peculiar about them - every letter was composed of a bunch of tiny dots placed very close to each other. Lance thought that it was very similar to the Braille alphabet, the touch-based writing for the blind. Sadly, that also meant nobody in the team could read it.

"So, Mr. Lance... did you find anything interesting?" Homura asked, looking over Lance's shoulders.

James frowned, trying to make out the writings on the wall. "And... what's with all the dots? Did anyone try to write graffiti on that wall?"

"Not exactly, Jamey-boy..." Meowth said, wrinkling his nose. "What you're seeing is nothing more than Braille writing... it's used to be read by the people who are unable to see."

"Exactly..." Brock confirmed. "The blind use their hands to read Braille writing, taking advantage of the fact that their other senses tend to be keener. However, I'm afraid we have no idea how to read it... if only we had some experts with us..."

"There's way around it, anyway." Gary stated, as he took off his backpack and took a small notepad and a pen out of it. Then, he turned to the first blank page he could find and began copying what was written on the wall. "I think it's a good idea to copy all of this, and show it to someone who knows more about Braille. I'm curious to see what will come out of this."

Ash nodded, impressed by his friend and rival's quick thinking. "Well, I think it's a great idea, Gary! Wish I had thought of it myself..." he stated, interrupting himself when he saw that Pikachu had perked up his ears in alarm, and Gible was sniffing the air suspiciously. "Hm? Pikachu, Gible, what's the matter? Something wrong?"

"_Pika pi! Pika pika chu!_" the yellow mouse confirmed, pointing to the exit of the room. The other trainers immediately understood that something was wrong, and that some Team Rocket agents were probably coming!

"We didn't really need this..." Brock commented. "If we get discovered now, there go our chances of catching Team Rocket off guard... what can we do?"

"Wait, I think I got it!" Meowth exclaimed. "Hey, James, we need both Carnivine and Mime Jr. for this! Let them out, now!"

"Er... I can do that, but what's the..." James answered, bt interrupted himself and shook his head. No time to be asking questions. "Er... alright, it doesn't matter! We'll ask questions later! Carnivine, Mime Jr., we need your help!"

The small Psychic-type and the carnivorous plant popped out of their Pokeballs... and Carnivine, as was probably to be expected, wrapped himself around James with his vine-like arms, hugging James tightly enough to cause his face to turn the same colour as his hair! "Uuuuuugh... I'm... happy... that you care about me... so much... Carnivine... but... ugh... please understand... you're smothering me!" the young man murmured, as the all-too-enthusiastic Grass-type tried to bite on his trainer's head. Sighing in resignation, Mime Jr. went to Carnivine and telecinetically pried the carnivorous plant's mouth open, allowing James to finally take a breather.

"Phew... wow... thought I was going to die there..." James murmured. "Anyway... I have no idea what Meowth is trying to do, but... he has aplan to stop those who are coming here! Okay, Meowth, tell us... what is it?"

"That's easy: that's the only entrance our... colleagues can come from, right?" Meowth explained. "Carnivine, Mime Jr... place yourselves at the siddes of the entrance, and get ready to attack as soon as the guards come! We have to neutralize them without fighting, or the whole complex will be alerted!"

"_Vine!_" the carnivorous plant exclaimed. The two Pokemon did some sort of salute and placed themselves where Meowth had instructed them to, while Ash, Pikachu and the others went back inside the secret passage, hiding right there and waiting for the danger to pass.

Only half a minute passed before the trainers were able to hear the sound of incoming steps... and a group of Team Rocket grunts, all sporting their trademark black uniform with a red R emblazoned upon it, entered the room a few moments later, entered the small room, wielding some electrical flashlights. James gulped nervously as they approached the secret passage...

"You two, get to work! Use Sweet Scent and Hypnosis, now!" Meowth suddenly ordered. Carnivine smiled nastily, open his enormous maw, and let out a mellow aroma that seeped into the grunts' nostrils, catching them off guard and causing them to become dizzy and sluggish. The grunts dropped several of their flashlights... and that was when Mime Jr. floated in front of them, his small eyes glowing a strange pink light!

"_Miiiiime!_" the small Psychic-type exclaimed as he concentrated on his opponents. The Team Rocket agents were too stunned by Carnivine's Sweet Scent to be able to put up any form of resistance, and ended up dropping to the ground like so many sacks of rice, and falling in the land of Nod.

"There ya go, Jamey-boy! As you can see, there's a solution to everything!" Meowth stated proudly as the team exited from their improvised hideout. "Well, we've bought ourselves some time, but we need to get out of here quickly, before more people come!"

"Then, let's get moving..." Brock concluded as he picked up his Gible. The other nodded in assent and, as soon as Carnivine had used a Bind attack to make sure the Team Rocket grunt couldn't raise an alarm when they woke up, made haste towards the exit. Ash and Pikachu were the first ones to reach the top of the stairs going to the outside of the shrine... and finally stepped out, shielding their eyes from the bright subtropical sun. Now that they had a chance to see it in first person, Ruin Valley looked ever more impressive than it had looked from a bird's eye view - the buildings and the ruins were simply towering over them, perched on top of huge rocky formations surrounded by dry grass and tropical plants, and there was a sense of mystery and discovery all around, making Ash and his friends feel like they had gone backwards in time...

"Wow... not this is a spectacular place!" the young aspirant Pokemon Master commented as he admired his surroundings in wide-eyed wonder. Even the burning sun was not bothering him now... rather the contrary, had he not known the reason why he and his friends were there, he would have begun wandering around like a curious child and admiring everything he possibly could! "Man, and to think archeology never really interested me... this place is something else entirely!"

"Heh, I know what you mean! You're not the only one to have said that after seeing Ruin Valley!" Homura answered as he stepped out of the shrine. Naturally, he was the one who was the least bothered by the heat. "However, we need to find a place where we can hide from the security, and I'm sure it won't be easy. Team Rocket is not taking any chances now, and they'll soon discover that those sentries have been neutralized."

"Let's try and hide there, for now..." Gary proposed, pointing to a patch of tall grass between two huge rocks. "It won't be a great hideout, but it will buy us some time until we find something better."

"I just hope it will be enough..." was Brock's answer as the team reached the patch of grass and hid among it, squatting low on the ground. Lance, in particular, found that his cape gave him some trouble with moving in the vegetation... and James, who was probably allergic to something in the grass, scratched his nose trying not to sneeze.

"Alright, now we lay low, and we try to find something interesting..." Gary proposed. The team began moving with as much stealth as they possibly could towards the rocks, soon coming across - thanks to James noticing something strange in one of the rocky cliffs - a narrow path that brought to some sort of natural corridor that would surely be a better hideout for them, and possibly bring them closer to the two executives in charge of Fortune Island! For now, luck seemed to be on their side, so it was worth a try...

"Hey, why don't we try sneaking in from here?" the azure-haired young man proposed. "This does look like a more reliable hiding place... and it's not teeming with these little bugs stinging me all over..."

"I just hope we don't end up in a wild goose chase..." Lance answered, taking a good look at his surroundings before the team entered the narrow canyon...

**oooooooooo**

"So, how are things here? Are we done yet? We can't delay much longer, and you know it!" a Rocket grunt asked impatiently as his companions were busy trying to extract a fist-sized red gem from the pavement of the cavern they were standing in. It was a truly magnificent gem, the colour of red-hot lava, with what looked like blazing embers dancing all around its surface, as if an inferno was perpetually burning in its interior. The Team Rocket grunt were using such Pokemon as Graveler, Sandslash and other Ground-types to release the awesome gem from its bedrock, but it was turning out to be more difficult that they thought - the layers of rock were very thick and resistant.

"We're doing all we can, but our Pokemon can't be expected to do everything!" another grunt answered, watching his Sandslash unleash a powerful Fury Swipes attack on the rock surrounding the fiery gem. "C'mon, Sandslash, put a little more effort in it! If those kids can reach us before we get the Ruby, we can kiss our project goodbye!"

"_SLASH!_" the pangolin-like Pokemon answered, trying to slash the stone apart with his terrifying front claws. Once again, the rock was breached, sending debris all around and further liberating the Ruby from its stony custody, to the point where the light that was now emitting from the gem hurt the Pokemon's sensitive eyes.

"Alright, that's the way it's done! Good job, Sandslash!" the grunt answered, petting his Pokemon with one hand as he reached for the Ruby with the other. "We got it! By the three Legendary Birds, guys, we've got the Ruby! Somebody go and warn Petrel and Archer! We've got what we were here for! Now we have no more use for this place!"

"Excellent job!" another one exclaimed as his friend lifted the Ruby up in the air, allowing all the cheering grunts to take a good look at it! Its crimson glow was now bathing the cavern, making it look like it was on fire! "Alright, I'm going! You keep things ready for when we'll get our butts off this island!"

**oooooooooo**

Finally, after wandering for quite a while among naarrow and lightless tunnels, Ash and his friends had finally managed to emerge in a large and mostly hollow cavern whose walls had been decorated with some primitive-looking pictures, which were semi-obscured by the darkness. To Lance, it looked like the place had once been used for sacred cerimonies of some kind... and now, judging from the flat-screen computers standing at one corner of the room, and a few high-tech cameras lying on a nearby table, it was clear that Team Rocket was doing some important research there!

"Well, this seems to be the place they use for their studies... what do you say, guys, I'm sure we're getting closer to some trap, now wouldn't you?" Gary asked, somewhat sarcastically. Pikachu, Meowth and Gible were especially alert, expecting some Rocket grunt to jump them as soon as they lowered their guard... and yet, after several minutes, nothing of the sort happened. Instead, there was a strange buzzing sound coming from a large screen affixed to the cavern's farthest wall, which lit up and flickered for a while before, much to the team's surprise, the face of a nameless Rocket grunt appeared upon it. There was some static and a few interferences before the transmission stabilized, but soon after, the man in black cleared his throat and began speaking, giving news that Ash and his friends found alarming to say the least!

"_Attention, to all squads... Excavation Group C has located and seized the Ruby, and is preparing to evacuate as we speak_!" he exclaimed, clearly excited about the news. Ash frowned, not knowing what he was talking about, but understanding that it had to be great news for Team Rocket... and not so great for himself and his friends! "_Commander Petrel, commander Archer... our research is over! We've got what we were here for in the first place!_"

"What? So... this island's Team Rocket HQ was just in orderto search for this... Ruby, or whatever it was?" Homura exclaimed, rather surprised by the events. "And what would that thing be? Never heard of it..."

"Neither did I..." Lance admitted, which left everyonesurprised. As Lance seemed to be the better-informed of them all, and if he wasn't sure himself of what was going on, it meant that the situation they were in was really unusual. "It must be another artifact Team Rocket is trying to use for their power trip, but I have no idea what it's supposed to be."

"Heheheee... so, even the mighty champion Lance, the dragon tamer, has no idea what this precious jewel is? That's just too bad..." said a sarcastic voice for the other side of the large room, as a rather thick group of Rocket grunts entered calmly, with Petrel at the head. "Oh well, that's not much of a problem. After all, you won't be able to tell anyone about what we were doing in this island, and... Oh, will you look at that! We've got two of the three turncoats here as well!"

James and Meowth quickly turned to Petrel, and Meowth hissed in annoyance as he unsheathed his claws. "Hold on a sec, pal!" he meowed. "You've calling us turncoats now? After you tried to drown us like Rattatas? You sure have some nerve, don't ya!"

"Where are the hostages?" Brock asked, keeping a Pokeball ready. "What have you done with them? And where is your boss?"

Petrel ignored the question and continued his tirade to James and Meowth. "Well, you were never important members of Team Rocket, anyway!" he stated simply, scratching at his purple goatee. "You were always expendable, and whether you're dead or alive makes little difference to us. But since you now insist on interfering with our plan... guess the first option suits us better!"

James grit his teeth and prepared one of his Pokeballs, as Ash and the others did the same and prepared for what was shaping up to be a rather tough battle. Petrel motioned for his grunts to get ready as well, and soon, Lance and the rest of the team were almost surrounded and trapped inside the room!

"Pikachu, get ready..." Ash told his best friend. "We have to take these guys out and stop them before they take the Ruby away!"

"_Pika!_" the electric mouse squeaked, his cheeks already charging...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Man, it was somewhat hard to write the last part, I hope I did a good enough job of it! Anyway, the battle for the Ruby and the safety of Fortune Island has begun, and we're inching closer and closer to the end of the Sevii saga! Be prepared, as I will do my best to make sure this part of my story ends with a bang, and Team Rocket will surely not go down without a fight!**

**Poor Butch, even in fanfiction, character keep getting his name wrong...**

**See you next chapter, as soon as I can get it online!**


	34. Fortune Favours The Bold

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**I'm back! Boy, writing this chapter was harder than I thought, but anyway... we have finally reached the denouement for the Fortune Island part of this arc, and we will soon see whether Ash and his friends can manage to pry the Ruby away from Team Rocket's clutches! And more than that, we'll also take a look at how some trainers we all know and (maybe) love are doing in the land of Hoenn... this chapter features another well-known character returning, and he'll have a pretty nasty run-in. You'll see what I mean soon enough...**

**Anyway, that's about it, for now! If you want to see whether Ash, Pikachu and their friends will manage to disrupt Team Rocket's plans here, just keep reading! Oh, and if you have the time and will, be sure to leave me a review!**

**See you soon!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 33 - Fortune Favours The Bold**

A small Pokemon Center, in a small village in the continent of Hoenn. It was a place just like many others, filled with trainers waiting for their turn to have their Pokemon healed and recovered from a full day's work. In other words, a perfectly normal place, where nobody was expecting anything exceptional to happen...

...

"AAAAARGH! I can't believe it! This is just my rotten luck!"

That is, except for the strange girly-looking guy with long purple hair and dressed up like a Cacturne who, right then, was ranting his head off at the news he had just read, right in the middle of the Pokemon Center's waiting hall!

"This is just maddening!" Harley shouted, with over-the-top emphasis. "I mean, one gives it his all to be recognized as a great Pokemon coordinator, doing trials every single day, returning to official competitions and finally managing to get top place in an official tournament... and what do these incompetent journalists write? Yeah, they write that it wasn't quite as spectacular this year because she... SHE... did not take part in it! AAAAARGH!"

By that point, Harley was being watched by several people who were probably asking themselves what the deal with him was... but the gaudy-looking purple-haired coordinator did not seem to give them the time of the day, and folded back the newspaper he was reading before putting it back in its place. Then, seeing as he already had had his Pokemon healed and rested, he decided to take his leave and get out of the Pokemon Center, muttering annoyedly to himself all the way.

"Darn... why is it that whatever happens, that brat always manages to one-up me somehow? That's just not fair at all!" Harley lamented as soon as he was out. Deciding to take a stroll in order to calm his nerves, the purple-haired young man began walking along a small path surrounded by trees, reflecting on how he could wash away what he considered as an humiliation. "Oh, but don't you think this ends here, my dear May! Harley, that would be me, will not forget this, you can bank on that! I swore I would defeat you one day... and I will defeat you! You'll see how badly I will take you down in the next Grand Festival!"

Harley was so busy ranting to himself and blaming his ill luck on May, that he did not notice the slight masked figure in uniform walking towards him from a nearby bush until it was only a few metres away from him. Surprised, the effeminate-looking young man turned to the newcomer, asking himself who that strange person might be, and what did he want from him: or rather, what did she want from him, seeing as even if a gas mask of sorts was covering her head, it was still plain to him that he was dealing with a young girl, probably around 12 or 13 years of age. Unfortunately, Harley was unable to discern anything more about her, seeing that her whole body was covered by her black uniform, with a mirrored R drawn on the chest, and nothing could be seen of her face.

The mysterious young girl kept advancing until she was only a few feet away from Harley, who stepped backwards in surprise and glared suspiciously at her. "Hey, hold om a second... who are you supposed to be, and what do you want from me?" he asked.

She said nothing immediately, but simply took a Pokeball out of her belt. "I want you to come with me." she finally stated after a few moments of silence. Harley did think there was something familiar about her voice, but the gas mask distorted it to the point where the flamboyant coordinator couldn't recognize it at all.

"Wh... What? Hey, hold on a minute, here, kiddo! You can't just waltz up to me and tell me what I must or must not do! It's not exactly the most polite thing in the world, now wouldn't you agree?" he protested as he produced a Pokeball himself and got ready to fight if need be. "Anyway, if you want me to come with you, you'll have to best me in a Pokemon battle! And I'm warning you, I'm a great coordinator! I just won a national tournament, if that tells you anything!"

The unimpressed girl threw her Pokeball, which opened up and released a magnificent azure-white Glaceon with hypnotic coal-black eyes, who settled down on the improvised battlefield and got ready for the battle. Harley was not daunted by that, though, and he gave his own Pokeball a quick kiss before tossing it as well. "A Glaceon, huh? Very interesting, but it will be no match with my own Pokemon! Come out, Octillery, it's time to shine!"

A huge red octopus with a sucker-shaped mouth popped out from Harley's Pokeball and got ready to fight, holding fast to a nearby rock with one of his long tentacles before standing up on several of his other "legs", and glaring at the opposing Glaceon in defiance. "Hehehee... I bet you're surprised to see such a Pokemon in my team!" Harley commented, vainly combing his long hair with a gesture of his hand. "And before you think this is just another cookie-cutter Water-type Pokemon, allow me to demonstrate just how well I trained him! Octillery, if you please... burn that Glaceon with Flamethrower!"

The mysterious young girl frowned behind her gas mask, as the octopus-like Pokemon breathed in... and unexpectedly released a huge stream of fire, targetting Glaceon! The Ice-type squatted low on the ground and managed to avoid the dangerous Fire-type attack by jumping away, but the peripherical heat still managed to scald him somewhat, and the mysterious girl grit her teeth behind her mask in sympathy. Luckily, her Glaceon was much tougher than this, and managed to climb to his feet a second later.

"Hehehee... good for your Glaceon to have dodged that, but he won't be able to keep this up for long!" Harley chuckled. "Okay, Octillery... do it again!"

The octopus-like Pokemon attempted the same attack once again... but this time, the mysterious girl pressed her Glaceon's attack, keeping Harley's Octillery to go on the offensive again. The ice fox opened his mouth, and a glowing white sphere of energy appeared inside of it...

"Glaceon, use your Hail attack!" she ordered. Glaceon immediately answered by shooting a barrage of ice crystals from his mouth and sending them upwards, so that one second later, as Glaceon's attack came back down, Harley and his Octillery found themselves under a heavy rain of ice pellets, which they tried to defend themselves from as well as they could possibly manage!

"Argh... I... I didn't see that coming..." the purple-haired young man exclaimed. "Ouch... hey, quit it! This is not... fun at all!"

"It is not a joke. And I'm sorry you had to be involved in all of this." the mysterious assailant said, and for a brief moment, Harley was sure he had heard genuine regret in the girl's voice. "I have no choice but to do this. Therefore... I must wrap this up here and now. Glaceon, end this with a Blizzard attack!"

"_Eon..._" the cute Ice-type Eevee evolution exclaimed, sympathizing with his trainer's regret. But his hesitation only lasted a split second, before the Pokemon took a deep breath and shot a powerful gust of chilling wind and snow at his opponents, who could do nothing but widen their eyes in fear as they understood what a terrible situation they were in. After all, the normally inaccurate Blizzard becomes a sure-fire hit under Hail conditions...

"_Hey... hey, hold on a sec here! Are... are you saying that... we're about to be turned into living popsicles by this groupie? No, wait! Hold on! This is not..._"

These, or along these lines, were Harley's thoughts, just a second before both he and his Octillery were overwhelmed by the powerful Ice-type attack and covered in a thick mantle of ice and snow...

**oooooooooo**

It was a moment of extreme tension - with Ash and his friends on one side, ready to fight their battle; and Petrel and his underlings on the other, determined to make them waste enough time to escape with the Ruby they had just stolen from the bowels of Fortune Island. It looked like one of the two factions was just waiting for the other one to make a first move, in order to exploit the mistake... and in the end, it was Homura who broke the stalemate, letting out one of his strongest Pokemon! "Alright, since it's come down to this... we can't do much else but start fighting! Go, Arcanine! Show 'em what you're made of!"

Roaring in defiance, the majestic tiger-dog Pokemon popped out, blazes dancing all around his mane! "_ARRRRRCANINE!_" he growled in determination as he glared at the Team Rocket agents, managing to cow some of them into stepping back. One of tem, though, was not about to be impressed that easily and stepped forward, tossing his own two Pokeballs with a casual gesture.

"Fine then... if that is the case, we aren't going to waste time! Loudred, Zangoose, come out! Show these brats what Team Rocket is really made of!" he exclaimed.

"And I'm joining the fray too!" another grunt said with an irritating giggle. "Your turn now... Hippopotas and Claydol!"

As the other Team Rocket members unleashed their own Pokemon, and Petrel surrounded himself with what looked like a small army of Koffings led by a Weezing (which made James flinch for a moment as he recalled his own faithful Weezing...), the four Pokemon that had been called out first took their position at the head of the assault team: in front of the second grunt, there were a couple of bizzarre-looking Ground-type Pokemon: an Hippopotas, a creature resembling a miniature hippopotamus with an overlarge nose surmounted by a pair of small beady eyes, a mottled beige hide and a couple of holes on its back from which a slow yet steady flux of golden sand was streaming out; and a Claydol, a strange floating Pokemon looking like a terra cotta statuette with a vaguely humanoid body and an overlarge head crowned by large pink eyes, each one of which seemed to sport a different emotion. On the other side, there were a couple of Normal-type Pokemon - a Loudred, a short and squat creature with a huge mouth and circular ears decorated with eye-like drawings, whose short arms and legs ended with three clawed fingers; and a Zangoose, a Pokemon similar to a huge weasel or a wolverine, armed with long black claws on each paw, and noted especially for its enmity towards Seviper.

Even the other members of Ash's team decided it was time to do their best. "Fine then... looks like we really can't pull our punches on this one! Okay... come out, Meganum and Infernape!" Ash exclaimed, letting out two of his strongest fighters. "Pikachu, I need you to help out as well!"

"_Pikachu!_" the yellow mouse nodded, sliding in a guarding position just as Meganium and Infernape materialized in front of Ash and got ready! 

"Your turn now... Graveler, Rhyhorn and Croagunk!" Brock exclaimed. The latest comers in his team popped out and got ready alongside Pikachu, Meganium and Infernape.

"Nidoking... time to battle!" Gary exclaimed.

Lance whipped out another Pokeball from under his cape and tossed it in the air. "Very well... I need your aid once again, Aerodactyl!" he called out as he released the pterodactyl-like Pokemon. Even James and Meowth, despite knowing how outclassed they probably were in comparison to Petrel, decided to make a stand alomgside their temporary allies.

"O-okay, Carnivine... guess you're needed once again! Come out... and please try not to throttle me this time around!" James said. "You too, Slugma, come out!"

Both Pokeball sailed in the air and released their occupants... to which Petrel could not hold back a burst of derisive laughter when he saw the small lava slug crawl alongside Carnivine!

"Hahahahahaaaa! Am I supposed to be afraid of that sorry excuse for a Pokemon?" the purple-haired executive laughed, his index finger pointed at Slugma. "Oh, please! It's all too obvious that you have no idea what a real Pokemon is! Slugmas are useless and stupid critters! They can only crawl here and there, and squirt some molten rock around! You don't think that little runt can really give us trouble, do you?"

Annoyed by Petrel's derision, Slugma narrowed her eyes... but a low growl coming from Ash's Infernape made her jump up in surprise! The Fire / Fighting monkey was engulfed in a burning red aura, a telltale sign that his anger had reached its peak! And it wasn't hard to understand why... right then, Infernape's hard glare was affixed on the Zangoose among Team Rocket's Pokemon!

"Ouch... I had kinda forgotten that Infernape hates Zangooses..." Ash murmured, only then reminding himself of how his Pokemon had been acquired a fear of the mangoose-like Pokemon back when he was an abused Chimchar! And now that he had grown powerful, that fear had turned into hatred! Petrel frowned in puzzlement as Infernape began glowing... and a split-second later, the monkey-like Pokemon dashed forward, faster than the eye could see, and struck Zangoose in the jaw with a punishing Mach Punch that lifted the Normal-type off the floor and slammed him on the rocky wall right behind him! The mangoose Pokemon picked himself up... but he was unable to fight back as Infernape launched into a massive all-out attack against him, completely ignoring the rest of the enemies!

"_INFERNAAAAAPE!_" the Fire / Fighting dual type roared, before unleashing a tremendous Close Combat attack on his opponent, pummeling him with his fists in a whirlwind of blazing arms! Zangoose was thrown around as if hit by machine gun fire... and just when Infernape seemed to mercifully relent, the mangoose-like Pokemon was rapidly struck by a tremendously powerful Flare Blitz, turning himself into a blazing projectile and ramming his opponent with enough strength to literally pound Zangoose into the stone wall and leave a mangoose-shaped indentation! Finally, Infernape let his opponent go... and Zangoose slumped to the floor, eyes turned into spirals and fur blackened and smoldering!

"_APE!_" Infernape exclaimed, flexing his muscles.

Ash and Pikachu both sweatdropped as the monkey slid in a fighting stance once again. "Er... thanks, Infernape, but don't you think you overdid it just a little? I... er... think that will do for now!" Ash said, recalling Infernape in his Pokeball, while the other Pokemon began launching themselves at each other, exchanging terrific strings of attacks!

Several Team Rocket Pokemon, desperate to overcome technical superiority with numbers, swarmed Lance's Aerodactyl, attacking the prehistoric flying reptile from all directions... but the ferocious Rock / Flying Pokemon grinned fiercely and began blocking the attacks by folding his wings against his body, and all the attacks coming his way were about as effective as hurling rotten eggs at a block of concrete. The enemy Pokemon hung back in frustration and alarm, while the flying reptile took to the air with a single clap of his wings and began flying circles around his opponents, at least until Lance gave another order!

"Now, Aerodactyl! Use Rock Slide!"

The dragon amer motioned with his hand, and the Rock / Flying living fossil dashed to the ceiling, with a speed and agility that looked almost frightening in such a massive beast! He rammed the ceiling with all of his might, causing a huge barrage of stones, most of which the size of a man's fist, to detach from it with a deafening rumble and to plummet on the enemies, knocking out many of them in a single blow! Nearby, Homura's Arcanine was taking care of an opponent's Hippopotas, who openedhis jaws wide and unleashed a powerful Sandstorm attack which forced the tiger-dog to step back under a rain of debris, sand and peebles! Arcanine shook the dust and the sand off of himself, then closed his eyes and tried to locate his opponent with his Odor Sleuth attack, sniffing the air in order to guess where Hippopotas could be. For a short while, the Fire-type stood on the defensive, as if trying his best to weather the Sandstorm... then, he growled and took aim, keeping his eyes closed, as a flaming kanji-shaped projectile lit up in his mouth!

"Strike, Arcanine! Use a Fire Blast, now!" Homura exclaimed. The canine Pokemon took a deep breath and shot his most powerful attack at the opponent, who could do nothing but widen his eyes when the Fire Blast completely occupied his view. The Sandstorm receded, useless against such a powerful attack... and the Rocket grunt Hippopotas belonged to, in a moment of panic, gave the only order that could spare his Pokemon from a painful attack!

"Aaaaargh! Dig, now!" the Rocket exclaimed, shouting the first thing that he could think of. The hippopotamus-like Pokemon suddenly closed his mouth, interrupting his Sandstorm attack, and began furiously digging into the ground in order to try and avoid Arcanine's attack. But he only managed to dig himself a couple inches into the ground, before the Fire Blast impacted on him and exploded in a huge fireball, sending Hippopotas flying with a pained moan. The Ground-type landed heavily, smoke billowing from his blackened form, and fainted.

"You're not getting away with this!" Petrel exclaimed, still surrounded by his Koffings. "Okay, boys, let's get rid of these fools! Attack with your Sludge!"

The bunch of floating Poison-type Pokemon opened their mouths and rained some toxic, foul-smelling viscous substance upon James' Slugma, who incinerated all the shots with her Flamethrower attack before they could get too close, while Loudred and Claydol tried to attack Rhyhorn and Graveler. Nidoking, Croagunk, Carnivine and Meowth were busy fending off lower-level opponents... but the sheer numerical superiority of the Team Rocket Grunt did not bide well for the team, especially since Archer had not shown himself just yet...

"Now, Graveler! Use Rock Polish!" Brock ordered. The Rock / Ground Pokemon quickly obeyed, blocking a Stomp attack by Loudred and rubbing his own shoulders with his four hands, in an attempt to scrape off as much useless debris as he could. For a moment, some sparkling lights danced around Graveler's body, who then started moving with much more swiftness and adroitness. Croagunk was taking care of a couple of Mankeys trying to double-team him, while James' Slugma was having an hard time facing Claydol, whose psychic powers were allowing him to easily handle the Fire-type slug. An Extrasensory attack, unleashed with deadly precision, flung Slugma against a wall, but she was not going to give up so easily, and she got up with a quick jerk of her body, opening her mouth and creating a huge ball of fire inside of it...

"Resist, Slugma! Attack him with Flamethrower!" James exclaimed. Slugma took a deep breath and spat out a torrent of fire from her mouth, but the enemy Claydol answered with a Rapid Spin attack, spinning on himself like a top and swaying the flames threatening to engulf him, which greatly weakened the blow! Meanwhile, a huge Weezing, the leader of Petrel's small army of Koffings, was approaching ominously...

"Hehehee... did you really think that was all you needed to defeat Claydol?" Petrel chuckled nastily, while the Ground / Psychic type levitated upwards, and his own Weezing began breathing out a cloud of noxious purple vapors. "Really... Slugmas just don't have any talent! Really fitting for failures like you and your friend! Team Rocket? Heheheee... don't make me laugh, you and that stupid friend of yours would only be useful to us as floor cleaners!"

That was the wrong thing to say... and Petrel understood that just a moment too late, when a red flame burst out of Slugma's semi-liquid body, a telltale signthat the magmatic slug hadn't taken kindly to Petrel insulting her trainer! With an enraged screech, Slugma began to literally make the lava forming her body boil...

"Y'know what, pal? I think you've gone an' pissed her off..." a sarcastic Meowth commented, before dodging a Nidorina's Tackle attack and striking back with his own Fury Attack, doing little damage but managing to throw his opponent off for a second. Petrel shrugged off Meowth's warning, but James decided not to let this occasion go to waste!

"Alright, time to show him what we can really do!" James exclaimed. "Slugma, shut that buffoon up with a nice Lava Plume attack!"

"_SLUG!_" the lava snail answered. The burning fluid that made up her body began squirting towards Claydol and the Koffings, who could not react in time and were hit! The strange Ground / Psychic Pokemon writhed in surprise and pain and tried to lower itself to the ground while the Koffins dispersed with hoarse exclamations of panic, but Slugma was not going to relent, and threw herself at her opponent in fury to deliver a powerful Body Slam attack! Much to the surprise of Petrel, who had written her off as slow and clumsy, the lava slug hit the strange statuette-like Pokemon with all the weight of her body, which combined with her high body temperature put quite a dent in Claydol's defenses! The Ground / Psychic type was left reeling in midair, a rather nasty burn on its underbelly where Slugma had hit him!

"Curses..." Petrel mutered in rage. "The Flame Body ability... should have expected it..."

"Hehehee..." James laughed goofily as his Slugma landded with a somersault and nodded, a small crimson flame billowing from her nostrils. "Now you don't think my little Slugma is so weak anymore, do you? Well done, Slugma, you showed him what's what!"

"_Slugma! Slugma!_" the Fire-type snail squeaked pridefully.

"Hey, James! Less talking, more fighting! These guys outnumber us!" Meowth recalled him as he tried to avoid a Poliwhirl and a Bidoof's Water Gun attacks. The battle was still raging around them, with Ash and his team seemingly at an advantage, especially thanks to Lance's Aerodactyl mowing down the opposition... and Pikachu and Meganium helping in no small part.

But things were still far from being under control: Team Rocket was still managing to slow them down, and if given enough time, they would soon be able to escape with the captured Ruby! They had to end the battle soon, or they would not get a second chance...

"Alright, guess the kiddie gloves are off..." Gary muttered, while his Nidoking was busy handling an enemy Gloom. "Nidoking! Get rid of that pokemon with Mega Punch!"

"Graveler, use Defense Curl... and then bowl them over with Rollout! Croagunk, use Rock Smash now!" Brock ordered. The toad-like Pokemon, the faster of the two, was able to get the jump on his opponent, a massive Sandshrew, and knocked him out with a vicious overhead punch, causing him to fall with a dull thud.

Graveler, on the other hand, curled itself into a ball, then rolled against the enemy Loudred at high speed, trying to ram the Normal-type... but the noisy Pokemon and his trainer seemed to have expected that, andwere ready to counter with one of their own attacks! The wide-mouthed Pokemon cleared his voice and took a deep breath as he prepared to unleash his signature attack on the rolling boulder...

"Loudred! Use Hyper Voice, now!" his trainer ordered. Loudred complied at once, unleashing an ear-shattering roar that created a barrage of powerful sound waves, literally ripping the rocks off the ground and shaking the very walls of the cave, to the point where Ash and his friends actually worried about it collapsing! And it was worse for Graveler and Gary's Nidoking, who were inside the radius of action of the attack!

"Uuuugh... careful, Graveler! Nidoking!" Brock managed to exclaim over the powerful noise. The powerful soundwaves struck Graveler and Nidoking, knocking them down... but they managed to climb back to their feet soon enough, and Nidoking quickly countered by shooting a Sludge Bomb at his opponent, catching him straight in the face! Then, as Loudred flinched, using his hands to try and clean off the foul-smelling mud clinging to him, Graveler curled into aball once again, boosting his defensive ability... and then threw himself at his opponent, who was unable to do anything to stop him this time! Loudred widened his eyes in panic when Graveler reached him, a moving wall of stone and anger... and struck him with overwhelming force, sending him to the ground! Loudred tried to stand up and attack again, but Graveler quickly got away, speed-climbed the nearest wall... and then turne around and attacked again with Rollout, with increased power this time around! Another terrific slam lifted Loudred clean off the ground, and this time, the Normal-type was unable to resist it, and remain unconscious on the cold hard floor!

However, Ash and his friends still hadn't made any step forward... and Team Rocket was actually managing to buy all the time they needed to get away with their prize! Had Ash and his friends not hurried up, the Ruby wwould have flown away...

...

Sure! Fly away! That was the ticket! Lance, who had come to this sudden realization, knew that it was a risky plan and its success wasn't assured... but at that point, it was worth at least a try!

"Aerodactyl! We cannot waste time here anymore, we have to stop Team Rocket before they get away!" Lance exclaimed, recalling his pterodactyl Pokemon, who quickly shrugged off a bunch of unworthy opponents trying to hold him off and, with a low screech, landed close to his trainer in order to allow him to ride on the massive Rock / Flying type's back. "Guys, I'll try to stop the Rockets before they can get away... can you handle the situation here, while I do that?"

"Do you think we're going to let you do that?" Petrel answered. "Weezing, use Fire Blast! Stop that Aerodactyl, before it flies too high!"

"_Weezing..._" the Poison-type wheezed, and a large ball of fire lit up in his twin mouths as he took aim... but by doing so, Weezing took his attention away from Homura's Arcanine, who was upon him in a single elegant bound, causing Weezing to recoil in surprise! The tiger-dog hybrid smirked almost nastily, just a moment before Homura gave an order nobody could expect...

"Oh, no, you don't, pal!" the Fire-type expert exclaimed. "Now, let me show you why I was chosen as Gym Leader of the Fire-type Gym in the Sevii League! Arcanine, strike down that Weezing with Close Combat!"

Ash and Pikachu's eyes went wide with surprise. "Wh... WHAT? An... Arcanine knowing Close Combat?" the raven-haired young boy exclaimed in shock. "I... I never knew Arcanine could learn that!"

"Well, now you know! In fact, it's a rather recent discovery..." Homura explain, a roguish grin playing on his face. His Arcanine did not wit for the explanation to go further before leaping upon Petrel's Weezing and beginning to pummel him with a barrage of punches and kicks, using all of his paws and moving like some sort of kung-fu master! The surprised and pained Weezing tried to retreat, but by doing so, he found himself unable to keep Aerodactyl from taking flight!

The pterodactyl-Pokemon took flight with a single clap of his wings, and quickly flew up to the ceiling, ramming it with a powerful Take Down attack, which the prehistoric Pokemon easily resisted recoil damage from because of his Rock Head ability. The ceiling easily gave under Aerodactyl's attack, crumbling into a plethora of stone debris, and a huge light invaded the cave, blinding all those present for a split second before their eyes could get readjusted, while the Rocket grunts quickly ran away to avoid the falling debris. Lance's Aerodactyl was now free to soar above the now-ceilingless cavern and up into Fortune Island's skies as he began looking for Team Rocket!

"Alright, Lance! We can handle this ourselves now!" Ash exclaimed, keeping his voice high in order for the dragon tamer to hear him! Gary's Nidoking was up and about once again, and was easily handling a bunch of Zubats, while Pikachu ran here and there in a series of Volt Tackle attacks, bringing down anyone unlucky enough to run into him: Pikachu looked like some sort of electrified missile, nothing was able to stand in his way!

Petrel, for his part, was scared witless at the sight of what Lance's Aerodactyl had been able to do. "Oh, no... no... I can't... believe this! Leader Archer, get away... these guys are too dangerous! Get away!" he murmured in panic, unable to focus on the fight in front of him as the battle intensified once again... however, he quickly composed himself and smirked smugly to himself, though it was tinted by an hint of fear. "Heh... heheheheee... what... what am I worried about, anyway? Those fools have no idea where our leader is! They won't even know where to start looking!"

**oooooooooo**

Sadly for him, that would turn out to be absolutely false - sure, Lance had no way of knowing from where Team Rocket would have attempted their escape, but that did not mean he couldn't take an educated guess. In fact, as soon as he and his prehistoric ride reached a sufficient altitude, the dragon tamer looked around, concentrating on the coastline in order to locate a place from where the grunts and their leader could embark. It was not that hard to do for someone as savvy as he was, and he soon managed to see a particularly favorable place...

"That way, Aerodactyl! That seems to be the safest place to set sail from!" Lance ordered, pointing to a small gulf between a couple of low reefs. The prehistoric flying reptile screeched and dove towards the place his trainer had pointed to at breakneck speed, while Lance held on with all of his strength in order not to lose balance. A couple seconds later, they had already almost reached the place Lance had indicated... and the champion's guess was proven right as a large motor boat, with Archer and several of his men on board, set sail from there!

Of course, Team Rocket didn't take long to see Lance and his ferocious ride as well, and several grunts became panicked at the sight! "Aaaaargh! They found us!" one of them yelled. "Protect the Ruby at all costs!"

Archer looked quite flabbergasted as well, but managed to hold it together in spite of the suddenness of it all. "Everyone, keep a cool head!" he exclaimed over the noise of the engine. "Push the engine to its limit, and try to throw him off! I'll do my best to force him to retreat!"

"Y... Yes, sir!" the grunt piloting the motor boat answered as Lance called one of his Pokemon - a tall, fierce-looking Houndoom with charcoal black fur and vicious curved horns! The hellhound threw his head back and let out a terrifying howl, before turning to Lance and his Aerodactyl, who were now descending upon the boat.

"Darn... how did you manage to find us?" Archer asked the dragon tamer. "I was sure nobody other than me and my collagues actually knew about our secret escape routes!"

Houndoom breathed out a Flamethrower attack, which Aerodactyl managed to avoid with a quick sideways dodge. "In fact, I knew nothing of them!" Lance answered. "I just took a good look at the coastline, and worked out from where you would more probably have set sail. And now... give it up and give back what you've stolen from this island. It would be far too risky to leave it in your hands."

Archer's annoyed expression soon turned into a self-ssured smile. "Hm. So, you actually think I will give up the Ruby just because you're ordering me to do so? Well, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you... I know all too well that I am not match for you in a straight Pokemon battle..."

As soon as the Team Rocket executive had said that, Houndoom ceased breathing fire and, instead, took another deep breath and shot out a large cloud of noxious, lead-grey gas right in front of Aerodactyl, who halted his descent in order not to inhale the poisonous gas... and with a swiftness worthy of the Pokemon belonging to an high-ranking Team Rocket executive, Houndoom executed a flawless Fire Blast, sending it straight towards the cloud created by his Smog attack!

Lance's eyes widened in realization, and with a light pull, he ordered the Rock / Flying type to gain some altitude... which the winged reptile did just in time before the Fire Blast struck the cloud of venomous chemicals, setting off a terrifying explosion! The Rocket Grunts all hit the floor as a gigantic ball of fire blossomed in midair with a deafening blast, causing the boat to sway dangerously, and throwing Aerodactyl and Lance back a good distance! The dragon tamer was forced to hold to his Pokemon with all of his strength in order not to be thrown off his back and into the water below, and Team Rocket managed to regain what ground they had lost, getting away from the island as Lance and his ride were busy getting away from the burning cloud!

"Agh... this... wasn't exactly part of the plan..." Lance muttered to himself, feeling the incredible force of the blast that threatened to throw him around...

As soon as he was sure that the motor boat had gotten away and was not in danger any more, Archer stood up again and ventured to take a look around, smirking in contentment as he saw that Lance and his Aerodactyl were now too far away from them to be a danger any more. "Well, that sure went about as well as I could have expected..." he told himself as he congratulated his Houndoom with a pat on the hellhound's back, before turning back to his underlings. "What about the Ruby, everyone? Is it still safely in our hands?"

"It is, Leader Archer!" one of the grunts answered, pointing at the blood-red gem encased under a glass dome near the main console. "We have completed our mission. Shall we send the order to retreat to Petrel and his men as well?"

"Do that right now." Archer answered with a nod and a prideful smile, now certain that their plan was going exactly as Giovanni had planned. "Also, contact Ariana and Proton and ask for update on their current situation. As we speak, they should have the Sapphire in their hands already... which leaves us with just the Emerald to grab!"

"Right away, sir!" the Team Rocket grunt answered, as he began fiddling with the console in front of himself...

**oooooooooo**

"Sure... sure, I see! That's great news, we just needed to hear that!" Petrel exclaimed, his spirits lifted at the news he was getting from his comm device about Archer and his men actually managing to escape! "Alright, then! I'll make sure to get away as well! Everybody, we're bailing out! We need to use the alternate escape route, that darn dragon tamer has just cut off the one Archer escaped from!"

"What? And what about the Ruby, sir? Is it safely in our hands?" a grunt asked just as his Exeggcute was taken out by a Body Slam from Gary's Nidoking.

Petrel smiled cunningly. "Yes, it is! The plan is still proceeding just as we predicted!" he answered proudly. "However, this place is lost to us now... we have to escape and reach Quest Island to rejoin the rest of Team Rocket... Prof. Sebastian, Attila, Hun and the others should already be waiting fo us there, and that's where the endgame will take place! But for now, recall your Pokemon and follow me! We're running away!"

"Alright!" the grunts immediately began retreating and recalling their respective Pokemon, except for a few stragglers that tried to cover their companions as they escaped, keeping Ash and his friends busy. The grunt with the Hippopotas had him use Sandstorm again, blowing a huge quantity of sand and debris in the opposition's faces and forcing them to retreat slightly.

"Argh! Hey, hold on a sec there!" Ash protested, as he and Pikachu retreated under the hail of sand and peebles. "Darn... they're getting away! What's going on out there? Lance and Aerodactyl... haven't managed to stop them?"

"I have no idea..." Homura answered, trying to wave the dust away from himself with his hand, while James' Carnivine and Slugma were desperately trying to see something through the thick sceen of sand. "But I'm afraid... we have little more to do here! Let's recall our Pokemon and get away from here! Team Rocket won't be returning to this island anytime soon!"

"_Pikachu!_" the lectric mouse squeaked, trying to retreat from the suffocating sand.

"Darn... just our bad luck!" Meowth lamented. "And here I thought luck was on our side for once..."

**oooooooooo**

Some time later, Ash and his friends had regrouped at a nearby Pokemon Center, in order to let their Pokemon rest and make a resume of the situation. However, needless to say, Ash, Pikachu and the others were quite disappointed to hear from Lance himself that Archer and his men had managed to escape and bring the Ruby along with them, and that Team Rocket had gotten away with such an important item. Now their enemies had another advantage on them, and all they could do was hope that Misty and Lorelei's team had had more luck than they had...

"Darn... this is quite a bad situation, indeed..." Gary muttered. "Now Team Rocket has that gem, and we have no idea what they're trying to use it for... I really don't like how the whole thing is turning out..."

"And we do know for a fact that Attila and Hun are still around, and they're probably with the rest of Team Rocket in Quest Island..." Brock wanted to add. "That's where all the executives are bound to gather, right? That executive said as much. We need to contact the girls and tell them that we'll rendez-vous on that island."

"Lance is already taking care of that..." Ash answered, pointing to a PC close to that island's Nurse Joy's desk, where Lance was talking to a full-screen image of Lorelei. "From what I know, it seems that Misty and the girls, at least, managed to thwart Team Rocket at Chrono Island, and they've gotten another gem Team Rocket was coveting... the Sapphire, I think they called it..."

"I see..." James affirmed, nodding to himself in a thoughtful tone. "Well, so there's more than just one of those gems around, huh? How strange... Jessie, Meowth and I knew nothing of ths part of Team Rocket's plans..."

"We've been away from HQ for quite a while, James... had to expect there was something we didn't know." Meowth answered. "And we haven't even updated the boss on what we were doing all that much, either..."

"Anyway, if Team Rocket managed to get all those gems, it could prove to be very dangerous for all of us..." Homura answered. "I have the uneasy feeling there are more around, and Team Rocket is looking of one more of them on Quest Island."

"That might very well be, Homura..." Ash answered as he cast a glance at Lance, who was still busy talking to Lorelei. "For now, Lance and Lorelei must discuss a place where we could meet... I'm sure we will have to rejoin forces, if we want to defeat Team Rocket as a whole."

In fact, that was exactly what the Elite Four and the champion were discussing at the moment, after updating each other on what had happened recently. "Well, that's the situation we're in..." Lance affirmed. "We need to meet at Quest Island as early as possible, and try to understand what the purpouse of those strange gems is. For now, the Sapphire is safely in our hands, which is admittedly a saving grace."

"Indeed." his colleague answered as she adjusted her glasses. "I already arranged for the Sapphire to be taken to the Kanto Pokemon League HQ, where it will be safer. As for the rest... do not worry about that, we'll rendez-vous at Quest Island in less than 24 hours. Just make sure we can locate you."

"Of course." the champion of Kanto and Johto answered. "We just need to agree on a place where to meet. Our quest is now at a critical phase, and we cannot afford to be stopped now..."

**oooooooooo**

Harley's expression, at the moment, was frozen in a grimace of surprise and alarm - literally frozen, as the flamboyant Pokemon coordinator and his equally flabbergasted Octillery were now encased in a large block of ice that Glaceon's Blizzard attack had created around them! The Ice-type glared with grim satisfaction at the result of his latest attack, before turning to his trainer and nod to her. Although, she didn't miss the sorrowful look Glaceon had given her in sympathy for what she was being forced to do...

"I know, Glaceon... I hate this myself... but sadly, we have no other choice..." May murmured sadly. Sure, she never liked Harley, an he had often tried to play unfairly with her, but he didn't deserve what she had just done to him. However, the girl tried to put on a brave face and took a comm device from her belt, activating it with a flick of her finger. "Hello? May here... I caught one of the thre targets... no, there were no problems at all... I'm waiting for you to come and get him... okay... then, I'll move to the next one right now... sure, commander Demitri, I know that... I am only doing it for my brother, after all... Sure... Later."

May cut off the communication and sighed. It was time to move to the new target, and it was certainly going to be much harder...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Close, Ash. Close but no cigar. Now our heroes and Team Rocket appear to be evenly matched, with one gem each... and the tie-break will be played at Quest Island, the last of the Sevii Islands, where Team Rocket has some nasty surprises ready for our bold youngsters!**

**How will it go? Stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	35. The Last Island

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Here I am!**

**And this chapter marks the beginning of the end for the Sevii Islands saga, as Ash and his friends meet again on Quest Island. Team Rocket is gathering all of their forces on the last of the mysterious islands, and this time, they will surely take no chances - they already have a few nasty surprises ready for our friends, and now that they know unwelcome guests are coming, they will waste no time getting well prepared to greet them. Their plans are at a critical point, just as Ash's search is... and rest assured that an heart-pounding showdown is in the works! **

**Again, there will be some old faces showing up in this chapter... I see that Harley's return in the latest chapter was received with a little bit of annoyance, but then again, being annoying and ridiculous is kind of Harley's hat! At least, considering how (albeit reluctantly) May just encased him in a nice pillar of ice, we can count on him at least not being a nuisance for a while! And I'll be focusing more on Ash and his friends' struggle to chase Team Rocket away from the Sevii Archipelago, at least for the next 4-5 chapters. **

**With that said, I think nothing more needs to be added! The showdown with the most well-known villains of the world of Pokemon is about to begin, and I can't assure you that nobody will get hurt. Perhaps this one won't be such an action-filled chapter, but the next one... oooh, boy!**

**Let's not waste any more time, shall we? Happy reading, and hope you will like what you read!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 34 - The Last Island**

Hun slowly stepped in the darkened cave, only accompanied by the steely flapping on her Skarmory's wings as she approached an heavy steel door at the end of the natural corridor, holding in one hand the very same Ruby that Archer and Petrel had stolen from Fortune Island, whose crimson luminescence acted like a weak torchlight spreading a red aura all around her. Her expression was still as cold and unreadable as it almost always was, and no excitement or pride for how close Team Rocket's plan was to fruition was visible on her face. Rather, it could be argued that she was somewhat annoyed at the fact that the other half of Team Rocket's top executives had failed to bring the Sapphire from Chrono Island.

Anyway, as long as Quest Island remained under Team Rocket's control, they still held the advantage. And as soon as they got their hands on the third and last of the gems, the Emerald, all they had left to do was take the Sapphire back from those meddling kids. Giovanni would certainly be happy to know about their success...

Almost without even knowing, the Team Rocket agent had gotten to the heavy steel door. Calmly, she slid one glove off her hand and placed the tip of her finger on a sensor placed on the side of the door, which read her fingerprint and beeped to signal that she had been admitted inside. With a low wheeze, the door slid open and allowed Hun to enter a new room, filled with strange machinery and dimly lit by a strange column of green light rising up from the center. Two familiar - to her, at least - looking men were standing close to the light, and as soon as she was in, they turned to greet her.

"Ah, very well! Our dear Hun is back!" a rather small men about in his fifties, with short and smooth black hair, and wearing beady looking glasses, dressed in a white lab coat on black clothes. "It seems to me that the mission to recover the Ruby has been successful... right?"

"Exactly, professor Sebastian..." Hun anwered as she reached the two men - the latter of which was obviously her partner in crime Attila - and showing them the firey red gem she held in her hand. "Archer and Petrel have managed to retrieve it from the ruins of Fortune Island. Luckily, those meddling trainers that intervened to stop them didn't have any luck, though they managed to slow operations down a little. It appears the trap we set up in Floe Island did not work as we wanted."

"I see. More's the pity, then." Sebastian said as he received the Ruby from Hun's hands and looked greedily at it. "But we have our chance to get rid of them once and for all, now. As we speak, we are close to recovering the Emerald as well, which means that two of three sacred gems will soon be in our hands. From there, it's all a matter of working up a plan to recover the Sapphire from wherever those meddling kids have sent it, and e're all set! I'd say, given the circumstances, we are in a pretty good position."

"And there are more interesting news, my dear Hun!" Attila stated. "Y'see, while the excavation work was going on, we... accidentally stumbled upon te resting place of a very nifty Pokemon that has been slumbering underground for who knows how long! Just imagine what this discovery might mean for us... if we were to control this Pokemon, we would have nothing to fear anymore!"

For once in a while, Hun smiled... the smile of a snake before it strikes its prey! "Really? That's very interesting, indeed... we can safely say that the advantage is ours!" the silver-haired agent stated. "Now, I reckon we will have to deal with the meddling fools that will soon try to crash our party, won't we?"

"That's never gonna happen! As soon as those rugrats show up, we teach them a lesson they are sure not to forget that easily!" Attila chuckled as he cracked his knuckles sinisterly. "Alright, prof... how long until our Sleeping Beauty Pokemon wakes up from the nap?"

"Not too long, I dare say... but if you could keep those anoying kids at bay for a while, that'd be very nice!" Sebastian answered, punching a few lines into a pocket calculator. "Anyway, they'll take a while to get to Quest Island, and they will certainly have to stop at a Pokemon Center to rest themselves and their Pokemon. We've got quite some time to prepare ourselves."

"That's good." Hun answered. "If that is the case, we might as well start now. I have no intention of being caught off guard when those Elite Four arrive."

An evil light shone into Professor Sebastian's glasses, while his thin lips curved upwards in a vicious smile...

**oooooooooo**

Ash had to admit, flying during the nighttime on Charizard's back, with his inseparable Pikachu in his arms, was a really exciting experience, made all the more spectacular by the marvelous starry sky hanging over them - a sky as blue as the deepest sea, dotted with countless stars that formed impressive tangles of light, the quiet sounds of the sea and the wind all around him and his companions. The fact that the climate was reasonably warm in spite of the heavy wind made the whole atmosphere calmer and more relaxed...

But sadly, even that coud not erase the knowledge that this extraordinary journey has a very serious motive behind - to discover Team Rocket's last hideout in the Sevii Archipelago, and stop the criminal cartel before they could do any more damage. Just like their arival in Fortune Island, Gary and Brock were flying on Ash's right side, on the back of Lance's Aerodactyl, while the Kanto and Johto Champion, along with Homura, was riding on his faithful Dragonite's back, who was flying on Ash's left side. Just a little behind, James and Meowth were following on board their hot air balloon. The journey had been going on for quite some time now, and they were sure they were going to reach their destination soon.

In fact, just a few minutes later, Pikachu squeaked and pointed to the emerging land just below them, causing the three Flying-type Pokemon to drop down a little to have a better look - just as Ash and his friends surmised, it was the island they were looking for... which looked rather different from the other islands they had been to: it was a long, narrow and rocky island filled with tall mountains, with just a small village in its northmost area, consisting of a few dozen houses among the tall rocky cliffs. For themost part, the island was dominated by a wide rocky canyon running through it from north to south, and the southmost part consisted of a small sandy beach, with a Pokemon Center placed right at the entrance of the impressive canyon. Lance nodded to himself and pointed to the beach with his hand.

"Okay, this is it! We've arrived at Quest Island!" Brock stated, pointing to what looked like a good landing place. The three Pokemon they were riding slowly began their descent, and James lowered the hot air balloon at the same time... and a couple minutes later, the party had reached the beach, and the three Pokemon landed, kicking up some sand.

"Well, here we are!" Homura said as he climbed down the back of Lance's Dragonite and stretching the kinks out of himself. "Well, this is where Team Rocket has brought that Ruby... they sure have a lot of hiding places, in these islands..."

Dragonite looked at the entrance of the canyon and let out a short, melodious call of agreement. It seemed they were in for a long and perilous search the next morning...

"Well, we've come this far." Gary said as he looked around. "As for the girls... Lance, did they tell you anything about how and where we were going to meet?"

The champion took a look at the time. "Yes, they should be here shortly..." he calmly stated. "I think we'll just need to wait about a quarter of an hour, but Lorelei told me there should be no problems about the place of the meeting. This should be it, in fact, and there's not much getting confused here."

"_Pikachu! Pika pi, pika pika pikachu?_" Pikachu exclaimed. The electric mouse had listened to Lance's words with a single ear, since he seemed to be busy listeningto some faraway call with the other... a mysterious, enthralling sund only he seemed to be able to hear. It was some sort of distant song, mixed with what sounded like a call for help, and it had such a sad, desperate feel to it... There was something wrong with that island, Pikachu was sure of that... but he wasn't sure he wanted to know what was that...

"Don't worry, Pikachu, I'm sure the girls are doing okay as well!" Ash cheered him up, not realizing what his best friend was feeling. "After all, miss Lorelei is with them, right? She's one of Kanto's Elite Four, and Misty and Dawn are pretty capable of taking care of themselves too!"

"_Pika pi..._" Pikachu squeaked with a slight smile. He had not missed the fact that, ever since their journey through Sevii Islands had started, his best friend had been paying more attention to the pretty red-haired Gym Leader. Who knew whether that meant something... But hepushed those thoughts aside, as right then Homura called for their attentionand pointed to the open sea, towards something that was approaching between a pair of water sprays. It was clearly a motor boat...

"Hey, guys, look at that! They're here even earlier than planned!" the Fire-type expert exclaimed, pointing to the approaching boat. Ash and his friends looked in that direction, and Brock took a binocular out of his backpack to get a better look. Luckily, his hopes were not dashed: the dark-skinned boy smiled to himself as he recognized Lorelei at the helm of the boat, with Misty, Dawn, Ursula, Jessie and Miyu sitting behind her. They all seemed to be in high spirits, which led Brock to think that their mission to Chrono Island had been successful.

"Yes, that's them! Miss Lorelei and the girls are here!" Brock announced, and Ash couldn't help but smile in relief. As soon as Lorelei's motor boat was close enough to the coastline, Ash, Pikachu and Gary began waving at her to signal their position, with Misty and Dawn doing the same thing a few seconds later. Only one minute later, the boat approached a small and rather neglected-looking pier facing the open sea, and Lorelei approached it and stopped there, allowing her friends to disembark. The boys went to greet them almost instantly, and Jessie, in particular, had to deal with James and Meowth almost hugging her in excitement!

"Welcome back, Jessie! Team Rocket is whole again!" the azure-haired boy exclaimed with excessive emphasis! "Oh, if only you knew... Team Rocket is just not the same without you!"

Jessie had to admit she agreed with that, and it was uncomfortable to travel without them... but she was rather put off by the excessive emphasis they were using was leaving her quite nonplussed! "Ugh... hey, hold on a sec, James! I understand, you don't have to hug me to say that!" she exclaimed, a vein popping up on her head and James hugged her in excitement!

"Heh, you know how Jamey-boy here is, Jessie..." Meowth commented. "Still, I have to say, he did a good job even without you! You should have seen how his Slugma beat up those jerks' Pokemon!"

"Heh, well... what do you know! Team Rocket does not seem to be that ineffective, when they team up with us!" Misty joked. "But anyway... yeah, we did a good job there, if I do say so myself! We even snatched some kind of gemstone from Team Rocket... a Sapphire that the Team Rocket executives wanted to use for their plans."

"As soon as we were back at the Chrono Island Pokemon Center, I sent the Sapphire to Pokemon League HQ. I was not going to run the risk of Team Rocket getting it back from us." Lorelei stated. "We will conduct some studies on that gem as soon as we have time, in order to understand what Team Rocket wanted to use it for."

Lance nodded, approving his colleague's thinking. "Yes, that was a good idea, Lorelei. However, now we have to snatch the third gem away from Team Rocket. Their main HQ is here, somewhere in this island. And I'm sure they have some nasty surprise in store for us."

As Lance and Lorelei continued discussing the situation, Ash, Brock and Gary were busy greeting the girls, while Homura was asking Miyu a few questions about what they had faced. "Well, at least you girls have had more luck that we did." Brock explained. "We had almost managed to steal the Ruby from Team Rocket, but they managed to get away at the last moment."

"Darn... well, at least you're all here, and nobody got hurt." Dawn stated, her worry seeping through her expression. "However... do we know where to look for Team Rocket here, in this island?"

"That's what we're going to think about tomorrow." Gary answered. "For now, we should head to that Pokemon Center right there, and think of resting up our Pokemon and ourselves. We have a long day ahead of us, tomorrow..."

"I'm surely not going to argue with that..." Ursula murmured as she stifled a yawn.

The team, after gathering together and checking the last few things, began walking towards the Pokemon Center... and Miyu, who had hardly spoken a word ever since the boat had arrived, turned to the canyon, staring in the darkness as if she had seen something mesmerizing only she could perceive... and her faithful Mightyena, Night Sky, seemed to be seeing the same thing...

**oooooooooo**

The evening had been nothing out of the ordinary. After stopping to have something to eat, the young trainers had taken up a few places to rest in the Pokemon Center, stopping there for the night.

But when the time to go to sleep had come, someone was having trouble doing so... and among them was the young Sinnoh Conference winner, Ash Ketchum, who at the moment was walking along the beach he and his friends had disembarked on, his faithful Pikachu walking alongside him. He was feeling oddly nervous... which was rather strange to him, as he had faced many dangerous situations before, and had always come out of them more or less intact - excluding him pretty much dying during the whole Mewtwo debacle...

Still, he was having a pretty weird feeling now, something he did not remember ever feeling. They were not living "just another adventure", but something that was going to have more far-reaching consequences. Yes, Ash knew that was not a rational feeling, but he had never been the rational type, anyway!  
"_Pika pi..._" Pikachu said, understanding his trainer's feelings better than anyone else aside from his mom. After all, he could relate - that uneasy feeling he was having ever since they arrived in Quest Island was not going away, and he was still hearing that strange ghostly call, desperate and threatening at the same time... and truth be told, he had no idea what to think...

"You're a little worried as well, huh, Pikachu?" the young boy rhetorically asked his best friend as he bent down to pick him up, and Pikachu squeaked his own name in assent. "Yeah, I can see what you mean... I have to admit, I'm a little nervous about the whole deal myself. It may be because we've already faced a Legendary Pokemon at Knot Island, or because I did not expect Team Rocket to make such a comeback."

"_Pika pika pichu pika chu?_" Pikachu asked with a shrug, to which Ash rubbed the back of his head and sighed once again.

"Yeah... that too... I was definitely not expecting Hunter J and the Iron Masked Marauder to show up once again..." Ash eflected. Those two had among been the most dangerous and despicable opponents he had ever come across, along with Grings Kodai and the Team Galactic leader Cyrus. "But I guess it's no use to reminisce about that. Should they show up again, we'll face them... and we won't be beaten, right? That's something I'm sure of, at the very least!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu winked. At least, he was happy tosee that, despite his worries, his trainer and best friend still kept his positive attitude. At the two inseparable friends walked closer to the sea, accompanied by the quiet, lulling sound of the waves coming and going, the electric mouse suddenly noticed that there was someone on the beach as well, some distance away from them: a familiar red-haired girl standing in front of the sea, watching three Pokemon that were having fun among the waves. "_Pika pi? Pika pika pikachu pi?_"

"Huh? Sorry, Pikachu, I can't make out who..." Ash answered as he got closer to the figure and the three wading Pokemon. Under the moonlight, though, the young boy managed to get a better visual, and was a little surprised - yet still happy - to see Misty watching over her Azurill, Mantyke and Psyduck, who were frolicking in the shallow water. Or rather, Azurill and Mantyke were frolicking, and the hapless Psyduck seemed to have been dragged into it, either by having to carry Azurill on his back, or by being a "volunteer" for Mantyke's attempt at taking flight! In both cases, the results were debatable...

"_Psy, ay, ayyy..._" Psyduck murmured as he plunged back into the water after akking yet another ill thought-out attempt at grabbing Mantyke's tail as she soared above the water!

"Hey, Psyduck, it was you who went out of the Pokeball without me calling you out!" Misty stated, too used to the psychic duck's antics to really get angry at him. "And when Azurill and Mantyke asked you to play with them, you were willing to go with them, right? Or is it just me?"

It wasn't just her, and all Psyduck could do was to sigh and resign to his role as a reluctant baby sitter. This, just a moment before Azurill jumped on his back once again, with enough enthusiasm that the psychic duck lost his footing and fell in the water face first, as the small Pokemon seemed to really enjoy himself!

"_Psyyy..._"

"_Azu, azurill!_"

"_Mantyke!_"

Misty smiled and shook her head, before noticing Ash and Pikachu getting closer, and turning to them in surprise. "Huh? Oh, Ash! Pikachu! Imagine seeing you up and about at this time! Why are you here?"

"That's pretty much the same thing I could ask you, Misty... We thought you were sleeping in the Pokemon Center's hall along with the others." Ash answered, motioning to the Center. "Oh, well... anyway, we just couldn't get a wink of sleep, so we decided to take a stroll outside. And so... her we are! Just when you were letting your Pokemon out a little, I see..."

"Yeah..." Misty answered, taking an affectionate glance at her Pokemon. Azurill and Mantyke were playing tag in the shallow water, leaving Psyduck to catch his breath. "With all that happened, I haven't had a chance to let them out of their Pokeballs so often, and I thought they deserved to get out and play a little... just look at how much fun they're having, they are just like kids!"

"_Pika, pika!_" Pikachu exclaimed. Deciding that, after all, he was not too old to enjoy such silly pastimes, the electric mouse stepped into the water and reached Azurill and Mantyke, who were happy to let him join!

"Hehehee... yeah, and Pikachu seems to appreciate it as well!" Ash commented as he watched his starter Pokemon joining Misty's newcomers. Feeling a twinge of envy towards the young Pokemon and Pikachu because of their light-heartedness, Ash sighed and turned to Misty. Again, he could feel that strange feeling he had begun to have each and every time he was alone with his oldest travelling companion. He wasn't sure how to call it, but it was sure pleasant... something that made him feel well, better than he usually felt talking with, say, Brock, Gary, May or Dawn. Though he still had no idea what that could be, and he was sure it wasn't just because he was happy to see her after all this time. There was something about Misty's motherly behaviour towards Azurill and Mantyke, about her good-natured ribbings of Psyduck, that gave Ash a feeling of strength and kindness at the same time...

"Say, Misty..." he said, getting a little closer to his friend. "Would you ever have imagined that our trip to Sevii Islands would have been like this? I mean, getting caught in so many adventures, and facing so many battles... we ended up facing a bigger problem than we could ever imagine!"

"Yeah... trouble seems to follow you wherever you go, Ash Ketchum!" Misty joked, letting out a sarcastic giggle. "But you know what? I'm perfectly fine with it! See, I really missed the days when I travelled along with you and Brock, and while being Cerulean City's Gym Leader has given me quite a lot of satisfaction, well... After all, I suppose what I really love is being able to travel and see the world... and hey, after all, had I remained home, when would I have seen such a beautiful sky? Take a look at it, it's wonderful!"

Ash, Pikachu and the other Pokemon looked up to the clean, star-filled sky. It was a truly unbelievable sight, made even more impressive by the immaculate beach upon which they were standing, and the quiet sound of the waves. For a few seconds, Ash stood silent, enjoying the moment...

"You know, Misty... I missed you a lot as well!" Ash stated, turning to look at the redhead in her eyes as his cheeks felt warm once again. "Sure, I made friends with lots of people... and both May and Dawn have been great travelling companions... but I always thought there was something missing without you... you know what I mean?"

"I... I think so..." Misty answered, smiling shyly as she used the tip of her shoe to draw tracks in the cold sand. There was something odd about the whole situation... the two of them felt like they were about to take their first step into an unfamiliar territory, and they were hesitating about getting off the paved road...

"Er..." Ash finally said after clearing his voice. "Well, we'd better get back inside, don't you think? We'll be facing a very tough day tomorrow..."

"I... I guess so..." Misty said, equally embarassed about the whole deal. "And as for Azurill and Mantyke, well... guess it's time for them to rest a little as well, right?"

Ash nodded, breathing slightly in relief. At least for now, he had avoided the most embarassing part...

Close to him, Psyduck looked at Pikachu inquisitively... and the yellow mouse just shrugged and smiled, as if saying that this was normal behaviour for Ash and Misty...

**oooooooooo**

But Ash and Misty were not the only ones who had trouble sleeping, that night. Sitting on a bench just outside the Pokemon Center, a familiar blue-haired young coordinator and her inseparable Piplup were watching the starry sky, trying to spend some time together in peace and quiet, thinking about what had happened lately.

"Well... here we are, Piplup!" Dawn commented after taking a sip from a can of soda she was holding on one hand, while petting her penguin-like Pokemon with the other. "I certainly would never have thought we would have gone through such an incredible journey, when we first set foot out of Twinleaf Town! I sure never thought it would be so eventful, and that we would meet so many great people and have such great experiences! I think... the same can be said for you, right?"

"_Piplup, pip!_" Piplup chirped, glancing at the stars above him. He couldn't help but agree with his trainer... sure, things hadn't started off that well, but with time and experience, they had managed to come to good terms with each other, and now they were the best of friends. "_Pip piplup, piplup?_"

"Yeah... and we even got to see Legendary Pokemon, and helped Ash save the world from Team Galactic! And now, well... here we are, trying to stop two more criminal organizations! And we even found out that J is still alive... yeah, life sure is unpredictable, isn't it? And I sure wonder what Kenny, Zoey and the others are doing, right now..."

"Well, well... if it isn't you, Dee-Dee! Penny for your thoughts?" said a well-known haughty voice, coming from her side. The blue-haired girl winced as she recognized Ursula approaching from a narrow road along the Pokemon Center's side, herself holding a can of soda in one hand and looking at her in a somewhat mocking manner.

"Oh... it's you, Ursula..." Dawn stated, still not completely sure what to make of her drill-haired rival. Sure, she had helped them out back at Chrono Island, and Dawn actually wanted to be able to talk to her without suspicion, but sometimes, Ursula made it difficult to do so. "What brings you here?"

"_Piplup?_" Piplup asked, narrowing his eyes at Ursula.

Ursula sighed, her previous arrogant expression softening somewhat. "Well, let's just say I couldn't sleep as well." she answered simply. "And I just happened to run into you, while you were watching the stars. Plus, it was as good a time as any to have my Jigglypuff go for a walk."

The pink round Pokemon popped up from behind the drill-haired girl and waved at Dawn and Piplup. "_Jigglypuff!_" she exclaimed, as Dawn and Piplup waved back at her.

"Okay, I see..." Dawn answered, falling silent immediately after as Ursula stood with her back to the wall of the Pokemon Center, taking another sip of her drink. For quite some time, the two rivals simply stood there, without saying a word... and in fact, neither of them was certain about what to say, although Ursula would have died before admitting that. There was an air of strangeness about the whole situation, and Dawn was feeling like time was standing still... she just wished anyone would make a move to defuse that awkward feeling...

Finally, Dawn decided to go for it. "Say, Ursula..." she ventured, gaining her rival's attention.

Ursula sighed, as if in annoyance. "Hm? What is it, Dee-Dee? If you haven't got anything intelligent to say, just keep your mouth shut, okay?"

"Hmph! Excuse me for trying to be friendly!" Dawn retorted in annoyance. "I was just trying to be nice, and you react like some spoiled brat!"

"Okay, okay... I'll admit that was out of line..." Ursula corrected herself. "Still, Dee-Dee, I would like to make one thing clear, in case it wasn't already... I am not interested in becoming friends with you or any of your bunch, is that clear? I am grateful to you for rescuing me, and I will help you taking down these Team Rocket clowns, but that's about it! I still consider you my rival, and my objective is still to defeat you and win the next Sinnoh Grand Festival."

Dawn sighed. "I know that... I just wish it wasn't so personal to you!" she answered. "I mean, really... I am friends with Kenny and Zoey, even though we found ourselves on opposing sides of many competitions... I wonder why it can't be the same for us two!"

"_Jiggly... puff?_" Ursula's Jigglypuff seemed to ask in wonder, as her trainer stood in silence, frowning in doubt. She seemed to be asking herself what the point of that question was... and after remaining silent for a little while, Ursula decided to evade the question, not having the time or the will to answer just now.

"Okay... look, Dee-Dee, we're simply too different to be friends, okay?" she said with a shrug. "I have gotten to have some respect for you, as you cannot have won the Sinnoh Grand Festival on luck alone. And you saved me from Team Rocket, so that's another thing I have to hand to you. But we don't necessarily have to be friends, alright? As soon as this is over, we will go back our separate ways and train our Pokemon for the next time we meet. And I fully intend to defeat you and become the top coordinator in Sinnoh, remember that! Well, with that said... Jigglypuff and I will be back on our way, and then we're going to get our beauty sleep. See you tomorrow, Dee-Dee."

With that, Ursula motioned for her Jigglypuff to follow her, and the round pink Pokemon, after waving to Piplup and getting a wave of the penguin's flipper in return, jauntily followed after her. In a few seconds, the two had disappeared behind the Pokemon Center's corner, leaving Dawn and Piplup to ponder by themselves over that unpredicted nighttime encounter.

Piplup looked quizzically at his trainer... who simply smiled back and winked to him, trying to assuage his worries. "Heh... No need to worry, Piplup! I'm not letting her get to me! For now, the important thing is to stop Team Rocket... and after that, we'll resume our training and make sure we won't get beaten! It will be alright, trust me!"

The little blue penguin stood silent for a moment... then, he held up one flipper-like wing and chirped as if saluting! "_Piplup!_"

**oooooooooo**

The rest of the night, after everyone had gotten back to sleep, was uneventful. As soon as they were woken up by the first rays of the sun, Ash and his friends (and not-so-friends) had stopped at the Pokemon Center for a while, just enough time to have breakfast and get ready for the day... and after checking that their Pokemon teams were ready, they had taken their leave, starting their journey towards the greatest natural wonder of Quest Island - the place called Sevault Canyon, and the mysterious Tanoby Ruins situated in the north-west part of the island, lying underground in wait for someone daring enough to explore them. Ash was the last one to leave the Pokemon Center behind, after taking one last scrupolous look at the team he had selected for this expedition.

"Alright, let's make a little resume... Aside from you, Pikachu, I have taken Infernape, Sceptile, Buizel, Donphan and Staraptor! Yes, I think they can do as a team!" he stated. He was regretful for having asked Charizard, Torterra, Meganium and other Pokemon he was familiar with to stay behind, but they seemed to be understanding enough, especially since Ash had promised them he would recall them in his team as soon as possible.

As Pikachu watched his trainer hook the Pokeballs to his belt, he noddded in approval and motioned to the exit of the Pokemon Center, in order to remind him that his friends were waiting outside. "_Pikachu! Pi, pikachu pi, pika pikachu?_" he asked, causing Ash to chuckle briefly.

"Hehehee... I know, Pikachu, I know!" the young champion answered as he finished placing the last of his Pokeballs. "And... as for the rest, the one I had with Misty the other day was a simple conversation between friend, okay? Don't... er... don't try to see something there wasn't!"

"_Pikachu..._" the electric mouse answered with a knowing shrug...

Nurse Joy came up from behind her counter to give Ash one last warning before he and his friends embarked into the new adventure. "Well, I sure am pleased to see that you have a well-trained team... I think you're going to need thm all, for the adventure you and your friends are about to have! Do be careful... Sevault Canyon is a very dangerous place, and some very suspicious people have been seen in the proximities of the Tanoby Ruins. Don't underestimate them, okay?"

"Thanks, Nurse Joy.. yeah, we know that, but we are here precisely to discover what those people are trying to do, and try to stop them." Ash answered, turning serious. "We'll still try to be careful, anyway."

"Good... then, I guess I have nothing else to add!" the pink-haired nurse concluded. "I can only wish you the best of luck... I know you are great friends and your Pokemon are strong, but you can never be too careful."

"Thanks, Nurse Joy! We'll remember that!" was Ash's answer. Pikachu straightened himself snd placed his hands on his hips, as if saying he was ready for everything... and after saying their last goodbye to Nurse Joy, the two friends walked outside and joined the rest of the team outside the Pokemon Center.

"Oh, here comes our Ash!" Misty exclaimed, as she saw the boy and his Pikachu walking out.

"A few minutes late, but I had kinda anticipated that..." Gary snarked, a knowing smile on his face.

Ash cleared his throat as he looked around, seeing Ursula trying to fan herself with her hand in order to stave off the heat, and Jessie looking at him impatiently. "Sorry, guys, I was trying to pick the ideal team for this mission... anyway, sorry for being late! If everyone is ready, we can be on our way!"

"Yes, I guess everybody is ready!" Brock said as he gave Ash a thumbs-up. "In fact, we were just waiting for you..."

"And let me tell you this, twerp, you've come just in time before I lost my patience!" Jessie muttered, combing her long fucsia hair. "I was getting all hot and sweaty waiting for you..."

"If you have time to whine, you have time to concentrate on the mission." Miyu told her in a deadpan voice, before pointing to a ruined road that, starting from the beach, entered into a small forest of palm trees and other examples of tropical vegetation. "Alright... then, follow me along that road. I know of a secret passage that goes through the forest and will bring us to the Tanoby Ruins. I'm sure Team Rocket knows nothing of it... we'll have this advantage on them, at least!"

The rest of the team agreed with the Dark-type specialist, who let her faithful Mightyena out of her Pokeball. Night Sky sniffed the air around her and barked twice, inviting the rest of the team to follow...

**oooooooooo**

It was unbearable.

It just couldn't stand being enclosed in that narrow space... at least not when he felt that, outside that cold shell, the place it truly belonged to was beckoning irresistibly. How much time had passed ever since he was enclosed there... and how did he end up in there, to begin with? Everything was so murky... it could still remember how, as it was floating in timelessness, it had suddenly felt a terrible force pulling it downward, like some irresistible current it could do nothing against... and there was that hideou feeling of everything bursting into flame around it, that all-encompassing red... and then...

The Pokemon once again felt someone approaching its coccoon, and instinctively went back to its dormant state, hoping against hope that the unwelcome guests would just leave it be. It restrained itself from grunting in annoyance as it felt one of them placing an hand on its coccoon...

**oooooooooo**

"So... that's where our, let's say, honored guest, has retreated to after crash-landing here, huh?" Archer commented, his gloved hand slowly and methodically sliding upon the smooth grey surface while Prof. Sebastian kept pressing buttons on a nearby console, and the other three executives kept watching wordlessly. "How are the experiments to awaken him doing, Professor? And while we're here, have you made any progress in your search for the Emerald?"

Sebastian adjusted his glasses and smiled in satisfaction before answering. "At the moment, the subject has remained in a quiescent state, but we are confident we will soon be able to awaken him. The main problem lies in this creature's peculiar physiology and psychology, but as soon as we're able to gain a more complete understanding of it, we will have the creature in our hands! At the moment, I have managed to create a device with which to control the creature's behaviour upon awakening, so we're safe in any event. As for the Emerald, I have good news in that regard as well. Attila, if you please..."

"Of course I do, Prof!" the blond Team Rocket thug answered, entering the room from a side room, the stoic Hun right behind him. As the four Team Rocket executives turned in their direction, Attila brought up one arm, with which he was holding a map with several colored dots signed upon it. "We have located the room where our treasure lies, and it's just a matter of time before we reach it and grab it! After that, we will only have to get the Sapphire back, and it will be done! Three of the world's most powerful Pokemon will be in Team Rocket's hands!"

"Don't get too cocky, Attila." Hun reminded him. "I should remind you that we've completely lost track of the Sapphire, and without it, our plan will amount to nothing in the end. And I don't think those girls have kept the Sapphire with them. Lorelei will probably already have sent it to the Kanto League HQ, where it's out of our reach."

"Alright, Hun, alright... Let's cross our bridges when we come to them, okay?" the sunglasses-wearing blond answered with a shrug. "So, let's focus on the current situation. We need to find the Emerald and take out those nosy kids!"

"You're right. If I know them, they won't have given up that easily." Ariana commented. "Proton, Petrel, you have set up those extra patrols, right?"

"Of course, Arian! I'm positive we won't get caught off guard, no matter how those kids try to get close to us!" Proton answered. "And now... while our esteemed Professor takes care of our... guest... we should go back to supervising the operations to recover the Emerald. As for the hostages that are still in our hands, they've been safely placed in the innermost part of this base, and they shouldn't give us any problems!"

"Good." Sebastian said, a disquieting light shining on his glasses. "Then, all I need to do now is wish you good luck, and hope that our operations end in success!"

Archer smirked, convinced that pretty soon, Team Rocket would elevate itself to the most powerful organization in the world. With those gems and that mysterious Pokemon in their hands, Team Rocket would surely become a force to be reckoned with...

**oooooooooo**

"Okay, the Tanoby Ruins shouldn't be that far away now. We just need to follow the river up to its source, and we should be done." Miyu said, pointing to a small, graceful stream of water flowing from between a pair of huge rocky cliffs, as if it was showing them the way to follow. In fact, up until that point, the team of trainers had been following the river ever since they had come across it, deep in the heart of the sub-tropical forest. From time to time, the appearence of a few wild Exeggcute or Paras made the journey more lively.

"That's good." Lance said, keeping his eyes on the tallest peaks. "Anyway, maybe we should send one of our Pokemon to scout ahead. We cannot discount the possibility of Team Rocket having prepared an ambush."

"Well, I can think of that!" Ash exclaimed as he whipped out a Pokeball. "I have just the right Pokemon for the job! Staraptor, come out!"

"_STAAAAAAR!_" the huge raptor bird screeched, spreading his wings as he took flight, and then descended towards Ash, who greeted him with a smile.

"Glad to see you too, Staraptor!" the young boy greeted him back. "Look, we need some help with something... could you go take a look in that direction, towards the river's source? We're afraid Team Rocket might have a trap ready for us..."

The grey-and-black raptor bird nodded and flew to the horizon, using his keen sight to scrutinize the land under him. For several minutes, as he tried to reach the highest points of the canyon, all Staraptor could see were a few wild Pokemon, the kind that could be expected to be seen in sub-tropical regions... but, as he was unconvinced about the whole situation, and knowing that some could have been suspicious of seeing a Sinnoh Pokemon around there, he decided to gain more altitude and observe for a safer position. Soon, the quiet river was substituted by the harsh, rocky little road climbing along the walls of the canyon, interspersed with the remains of ancient buildings... which was surely a sign that the Tanoby Ruins were close by! The Normal /Flying type was too far away to be certain about it, but he could swear he had seen some sneaky shadows among the rocks, emitting a strange aura. Staraptor had never seen anything like it, and he had to say he was not sure he liked it...

Anyway, Staraptor decided to focus on the more immediate problem and went back to flying in circles around the rocky cliff, trying to see as much as possible before he flew back to his trainer. Going a little further, he could see a few small groups of Rocket grunts wandering amon the narrow roads and the stone formations, clearly on the lookout for intruders. Along with these small groups, there were some strange machineries that Staraptor could not identify... but he had seen all he needed to know, and after making sure he was not being watched, Staraptor turned back and backtracked, getting back to Ash in a matter of a few minutes. The young boy and his Pikachu waved at him as he descended, and Staraptor landed in front of them with an high-pitched screech.

"Wow, he sure was fast..." Misty commented, unfamiliar with the elegant Pokemon's speed.

"Hehehee... well, after all, Staraptor was one of my best Pokemon during the Sinnoh League!" Ash answered as he stroked Staraptor's head. "Anyway, Staraptor, have you seen what those Team Rocket guys are up to?"

"_STAR! RAPTOR!_" the proud Pokeon screeched, pointing to the zone he had flown over with one of his wings. Meowth listened attentively, making sure not to miss even a single word.

"Hmm... from what he's sayin', seems there's quite the surveillance up there..." the feline Pokemon meowed. "And he thinks there could be more of it! Afraid there's no way to avoid them, we need to find the shortest way to reach their base, and take those clowns off guard."

Miyu frowned and rubbed her forehead. This was something she hadn't predicted... Team Rocket had come better prepared than she had thought, and even the road she had counted on was not that reliable any more. Luckily, she was not the only one to be able to think of good ideas: after taking some time to think, Brock cleared his voice and spoke up.

"Well... this does make things a little harder on us, but if we play it smart, we might be able to sneak inside their HQ the way they least expect!" the dark-skinned young man stated, a plan already forming in his mind.

"What are you planning?" an unconvinced Ursula asked. Things were getting more complicated than the rich heiress from Sinnoh would have liked...

"It's an idea I just had, and if anyone has better ones, then I'm all ears..." he answered. "But still... Staraptor, does any of Team Rocket's patrol squads take a long path, that you know of?"

The bird of prey shook his head, ignoring the answer, but that did not seem to daunt Brock. "Never mind... even if the squads aren't away from the HQ for long, we can always make them... guys, you do have Pokemon who can confuse their opponents, right?"

"Yes, we have a fair number of them, in fact..." Gary affirmed, thinking of Miyu's Umbreon and his own, Brock's Crobat and a few more. The young researcher smirked, having begun to understand. "Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

"And... what is he thinking, pray tell?" Jessie asked with an exasperated sigh. "I'd like to know that myself..."

"I'll tell you now..." Brock answered as he motioned for them to get closer, so he could explain everything.

**oooooooooo**

"Phew... man, it's freaking hot in here! I'm sweating bullets, and thes black clothes don't help!" a Rocket grunt, irritated by the intense heat, lamented. His and his partners' situation was not helped by the fact that they were patrolling a large plateau under the rays of the burning sun. "Why did we have to end up here for our patrol turn?"

"Stop complaining, Luke, it could have been even worse!" one of his partners fired back. "We could have ended up doing the patrol on the river baks! And if the plan goes without a hitch, this is the last day we spend roasting ourselves in this place!"

"Yeah, yeah... I know the drill!" the first Rocket grunt muttered in annoyance. "The fact remains that I'd love to get away from this furnace and cool down a little in my beautiful Viridian City... oh well, at least we're getting in the shade now..."

The small group of grunts was, in fact, approaching a ruined shrine that would have offered them some relief from the burning sun... and while Luke's companions criticized him for lamenting about the heat, they weren't going to complain about having a chance to rest in the shade! So, after cleaning some sweat from their foreheads, the five-grunt group approached the entrance of the ruined shrine...

And were almost immediately met with Crobat's unfurled wings and glowing eyes as Brock's bat-like Pokemon targeted them with his dreaded Confuse Ray! The head grunt jumped back in fright, just a split second before a multicolored beam reached him between the eyes, causing him to take on a stunned expression!

"What? What's going...?" another grunt started to say, just a little before two Umbreon popped out of literally nowhere and launched a simultaneous Confuse Ray at both him and the grunt to his side. The two remaining soldiers instinctively tried to reach for their Pokeballs, but they could do nothing as Lorelei's Lapras, keeping herself well hidden behind the wall of the crumbling temple, hit them with another such attack, leaving them stunned and swaying as if they were drunk. Unable to control their own movements, the Rocket grunts stumbled away from their zone of competence, and reached a group of bushes... from which Ash's Infernape popped up without warning, knocking them out with a couple of well-placed hits. One after the other, the Rocket grunts had been taken down, and Infernape looked at his own fist in satisfaction before motioning for his trainer to come out of hiding.

"Excellent job, Infernape!" Ash congratulated him, as he and his numerous team came out of the bushes they had hidden among. "Okay, now we have five downed Team Rocket agents... and there's twelve of us. What do we do?"

"Well, we don't all have to disguise ourselves..." Brock stated, as he and Homura began dragging the defeated grunts in the bushes. "Now, I'll explain what I was thinking of doing..."

**oooooooooo**

Sebastian and his most faithful attendants were back at work around the strange coccoon inside of which lay the mysterious Pokemon they were trying to awaken... and judging from the scientist's intent expression, it seemed they had taken some significant steps forward, and the mysterious creature was only minutes away from awakening...

Therefore, when his personal comm. device emitted a shrill sound, Sebastian could not hide his annoyance for having been interrupted in such a moment. With a groan, he grabbed the comm. device and answerd the call. "Yeah, what is it? Sebastian here... I thought I had told you I didn't want to be called upon if not for very important reasons..."

"_I apologize, Professor, but that's exactly the case..._" a female voice answered from the other side. "_A patrol just came back... it appears they have caught some of those trainers who annoyed us back at Chrono and Fortune Island... they are bringing them here as we speak!_"

Such news were more than welcome to the Team Rocket scientist, whose eyes immediately lit up behind his looking glasses. And even Attila and Hun smirked in approval. "Ah, that's excellent news! In that case, you can just throw them in the brig now. I'll decide what to do with them later on... though, frankly speaking, I hope they will accept to join us!" he affirmed. "Very good... do you happen to know if there are more of those brats around?"

"_There are... it seems our men have not managed to catch Lorelei and one of the aspirant Gym Leaders of the upcoming Sevii League... they were just too strong for our men to handle. Furthermore, we are certain that more of them have not shown up, and will probably try to attack us later. We'll keep our guard high, and try to catch them by surprise and capture them as soon as we can._"

"Good. Call me back as soon as you've captured them... and not before, is that clear?" the evil scientist answered, before ending the call and turning to his two subordinates. "Things are looking up, it seems! Some of those brats who annoyed us for so long are now in our hands, and the others should follow shortly! We still must be careful, but we're clearly at an advantage for now!"

"Glad to know that, professor." Hun stated. "If that is the case, I will take a look at what the excavation group is doing. They should have almost reached the Emerald as we speak."

Sebastian smirked, never averting his glance for the coccoon he was working on. "Please do. And if there are important news, update me on those as well. Attila, you will support the patrols at the higher levels... no sense taking chances now that we're one step away from our objective."

The muscular man nodded and put a fist to his chest. "Will do, prof!"

**oooooooooo**

The Rocket grunt in charge of the prison block sighed and put his comm. device away, then made way for the five grunts who were bringing along several prisoners: Ash, Pikachu - who was lying in his trainer's arms, as if he was fainted from a previous fight -, Misty, Jessie, James, Meowth and Miyu. "Alright, you can come in... We still have a few free cells, thanks to these brats and their little friends... just put them where you find a place! By the way, have you taken their Pokeballs, just in case?"

"Of course." the tallest of the grunts answered, with a firm, almost commanding voice. "Do you think we are beginners, or something?"

"Er..." the grunt murmured, understanding he had asked a stupid question. He coughed his embarassment away and pointed to the innermost part of the Team Rocket HQ, towards a corridor with steel walls that brought to the prison block. "Yeah... right, I'm sorry... anyway, please... put the prisoners away! And... thanks for solving this problem for us!"

"A pleasure." the taller grunt answered with a vaguely ironic tone as his group began walking towards their destination. The grunt stood to attention and saluted... and just then, he noticed a strange thing: several of the other grunts were keeping their head low as they escorted the prisoners, as if they didn't want the Rocket to see their faces. Anyway, he didn't think much of it, and he was not going to make an idiot of himself again...

"And why does it seem to me that some of them are kinda... short?" he asked himself. "Well, it does seems strange to me, but I'd rather not ask too many questions..."

As soon as the Team Rocket grunts, after walking through the sterile, empty-looking corridor, had reached the sliding door to the prison block, the tallest of them took out a magnetic card from his uniform and slid it in a slot beside thedoor, causing it to open with a low hiss. The grunts pushed Ash, Misty, Miyu and the Rocket trio inside, causing several heads - of both Rocket grunts and prisoners - to turn their way.

"Well, this is going to be your home for a while." the tallest grunt said, fiercely glaring at Ash and his friends. "Try not to get too attached to it, though. It's not going to remain that way for long! You've caused quite a few problems to Team Rocket, and we'll make sure you understand that you mustn't do it again. As for the three turncoats..."

"Hey! We are not turncoats, you jerk!" Jessie shouted all of a sudden, surprising those around. "We still work for our boss Giovanni! It was those four clowns who betrayed us and left us for dead, and we're gonna make them pay for that!"

Misty grit her teeth, wishing she could just grab her mallet and whack Jessie upside the head for being stupid...

"Say whatever you will, traitor! In any case, you will pay for opposing our leader Archer! You should know that you're interfering in Team Rocket's path to greatness!" another grunt, a female one, answered, before turning to a guard who was watching them in annoyance. "You! You're responsible for this section, right?"

"Yeah... it's me..." the prison guard, a muscular yet rather short man upon whom the Team Rocket uniform looked extremely tight, answered. He was nervously playing with with some keys, creating an annoying metallic clink. "And that would be Ash Ketchum, the kid who gave us so much trouble? Doesn't seem anything to write home about..."

Ash felt a brief impulse of rebellion, but wisely decided to swallow his pride... and Lance proceeded to defend him anyway. "You should know that there are a lot of great trainers around. Don't judge a book by its cover... and remember that this boy won the Sinnoh Tournament only a few weeks ago. That should tell you everything you need to know."

"Okay, okay..." the muscleman muttered. "Well then, let's place them in separate cells and keep their Pokemon away from them. By the way, have you heard of prof. Sebastian's new orders?"

"No... why is that? Any news?" another of the group that kept Ash and his friends imprisoned. Again, this grunt had a female voice...

"It seems they've almost gotten the Emerald, and the Pokemon they have found in the underground tunnels is about to awaken. Prof. Sebastian's experiment was a roaring success... that guy is a freaking genius, even though he creeps me up!" the guard chuckled sinisterly. "So, we should soon be able to get to the next part of our plan, provided nothing unexpected happens."

The tallest grunt smirked astutely. "Really? Well, then... I'm afraid I have to tell you that something unexpected will happen... right now!"

"Huh?" The guard asked incredulously... but he was unable to say anything else as he was struck under the chin with a vicious punch that lifted him clean off the ground and caused him to land in a stunned heap a little farther away! His aggressor quickly threw his Team Rocket uniform away, revealing an ample black mantle and fiery red hair in a flamelike hairstyle!

"Thanks for telling us where to find this Sebastian person." Lance told the downed grunt. All those who were with him quickly shed their disguises,revealing themselves as Gary, Brock, Dawn and Ursula, and those who had until a second earlier played the prisoner role quickly grabbed their Pokeballs, while Pikachu stood up and charged his cheeks!

Team Rocket was taken by panic and surprise, while Ash and his friend were letting their Pokemon out! Sceptile, Buizel, Donphan, Starmie, Psyduck (again, not called voluntarily...), Dragonite, Mamoswine, Carnivine, Seviper and Gabite all popped up around the team, as the grunts dispersed amongst screams of fear, or somehow tried to get to their Pokeball to react to the unexpected attack! But there wasn't much they could do, and in fact, they could only send out some low-level Pokemon,who were obviously no match for their experienced opponents.

"Dragonite, that's the right moment!" Lance ordered, and the orange-skinned Dragon / Flying type nodded, took a deep breath, and breathed out a powerful blue flame, aiming it towards the ceiling! The blow blasted through the ceiling and reached the skies above like a firework, and the Team Rocket agents screamed in panic, while the people who had been put in the cells, who had been quiet and resigned up until a few moments earlier, cheered in joy at te unexpected rescue and began loudly rooting for Ash and his team! Of course, the young boy and his friend didn't need to be cheered on, and they quickly retrieved the keys from the stunned guardian in order to free the hostages...

**oooooooooo**

On the outside, Lorelei and Homura saw Dragonite's bright flame soaring in the sky and exploding, immersing it in a quick shower of bright colours!

"Looks like they're having a party, in there..." Homura commented, as if he was speaking of the weather. "Well, what about it, miss Lorelei? Shall we join the party and have some fun?"

"I believe that would be advisable, yes." the Elite Four answered, sliding her glasses in place as she was used to do when it was time to get down to business. "Our friends are surely doing a lot of damage from the inside, but they will probably need our aid..."

**oooooooooo**

Up until a second earlier, Sebastian was in a good, possibly even ecstatic, mood. After all, the mysterious Pokemon he had gotten his hands on was about to awaken, and his experiment was going well. He was convinced nothing, at this point, could rain on his parade...

However, a grunt coming in with dire news had ruined his jolly mood, telling him that the same trainers they had thought captured and neutralized had caught them off guard... and now, they were wreaking havoc in the prison block, putting the whole operation in jeopardy!

"What... what did you say?" Sebastian exclaimed, losing his calm demeanor for a few shocking instants. Sebastian never lost his cool except when the situation was taking a drastic turn for the worse... which was exactly what was happening then! "How... how did those brats manage to fool us all? Did our guards have the wool over their eyes or what? We actually... let them pass as if we were inviting them to a wedding?"

"We... we are incredibly sorry about that, professor Sebastian!" the hapless grunt stammered back, his knees buckling at the sight of the coccoon as it began shaking and pulsating with life. "They had us all fooled... they had disguised themselves, or were playing the part of prisoners... and we actually fell for it hook, line and sinker! We are sorry about it!"

"If 'we're sorry' was enough to make things right... you wouldn't be in half the trouble you are in right now! You do understand that you're mucking up the whole plan, don't you, you fools?" the evil scientist raged. "Recall Attila, Hun and our four executives, and gather all the grunts you can manage! Don't let them get away, or I won't be kind on you!"

"Yes... o-of course!" the grunt stammered... and just then, Sebastian's instruments beeped in alarm, causing the scientist's rage to abate somewhat. As he turned to the coccoon, his angry expression turned to one of surprise... and then, one of joy and satisfaction as he saw fissures beginningt appear over the coccoon's surface, and a strange, innatural white light, iridescent colours fluctuating around it, erupt from the inside of it!

"What now...?" Sebastian began asking... and a victorious grin spread on his face as a strange shape made its way through the shell! "Finally! That was just what I was waiting for! Looks like those kids have come just in time for me to give them a sample of Team Rocket's newfound strength! This will be one for the history books! Hahahahahaaaaa!"

**oooooooooo**

Around the Tanoby Ruins, a multitude of threatening and disquieting black Pokemon, their bodies resembling alphabet letters with a single unblinking eye in the middle, began awakening, sliding out of the shadows...

**oooooooooo**

And at the same time, on a large flying machine heading to Quest Island...

Hunter J smirked as her target appeared on the radar, and several Team Vicious grunts gathered around her in order to see what was going on. This time, she was convinced that her target would not escape... and if those brats were still around, she would make sure they would not be a nuisance any more...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: And the battle for Quest Island continues! How will it end? You can be sure that next chapter will be filled with action!**

**I particularly like the Dawn and Ursula scene at the beginning... will it hint to better relationships between our heroines? Hehehee, that's what we're going to see soon, but rest assured there is a point toal of this!**

**Anyway, that's about it! I apologize for the lateness, and hope this chapter makes up for it! And no, it's not an April's Fool!**

**Hope you enjoyed, and please review!**


	36. Quest Island Panic

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 36 - Quest Island Panic**

The air was simply brimming with excitement. The experiment was finally going to come to a conclusion, and hopefully, Team Rocket would soon be able to control that mysterious Pokemon and use it to eliminate those nosy kids once and for all! The coccoon in which the creature had been sheltering itself for so long was finally giving way, allowing Sebastian to get a few glimpses at the new Pokemon's body... and with one last jolt that startled even the scientist himself, the coccoon finally fell apart with a loud crack, and the Pokemon inside burst free with a strange, disquieting undulating call, showing itself in all of its alien glory!

In fact, alien was just about the right word to describe the newborn creature: the form was human-like, no doubt about it, and it had a head, two arms and two legs, but that's where the resemblance ended: its body was a bright red colour all over, with a blue-green featureless face, with just a pair of white, circular eyes placed inside a pair of deep-shrunken eye sockets, and a vertical purple line where the nose should have been. Its chest was hollow, with a crystalline orb placed where the heart would be on a human being. The creature's legs were thin and whip-like and ended up in a spike-like appendage, while the arms were nothing more than a pair of tentacles, twisting around each other. It was moving in a very awkward manner, floating in the air without the need for wings or any other flying organ... and judging from the way it was blundering around, it was clear that it had no idea where it was, or where it should have tried to escape to. His slumber getting interrupted certainly hadn't been beneficial to him...

"P... Professor... Sebastian?" the Rocket grunt that had reported to the scientist only a few minutes before stammered, scared at the sight of the alien being. "What... What kind of Pokemon is this supposed to be? Is... is it even a Pokemon?"

Sebastian, who had been watching the strange Pokemon's rebirth with clear joy and excitement, slowly nodded. "Of course this is a Pokemon, you ignorant oaf! Isn't it obvious? What you're seeing here... is a very powerful and very special Pokemon! A Deoxys, an alien virus that has arrived on our planet on a falling meteor, surviving the atmospheric entry and mutating into a Pokemon in order to adapt itself to the new environment and survive! It's a really powerful Pokemon... especially thanks to its shapechanging ability! And we, Team Rocket, are definitely not going to pass it up!"

Saying that, the evil scientist pressed a button on his console... and while the confused Deoxys kept looking around itself, two strange devices, similar to TV antennae, emerged from the walls besides of it, and struck it with a powerful discharge that caused the alien Pokemon to become stiff! Deoxys writhed, in pain from the electricity coursing through its strange body, and tried to somehow free itself, while Sebastian simply adjusted his glasses and watched the scene with grim satisfaction...

Finally, after a few minutes during which the alien being had struggled with all of its might against the electric burst, Deoxys ceased all resistance, and its tentacle-like arms flopped down, while his eyes became dull and unresponsive... a sign that the alien Pokemon had fallen completely under Team Rocket's control...

"Hehehee... that's perfect!" Sebastian exclaimed. "Looks like the control system I created just for this Pokemon works to perfection! Sure, I might have to do some tweaking here and there... but for now, what's important is that it's keeping this nice little puppy on a leash! Fine, Deoxys... I'll immediately put your powers to the test! We have a few busybody trainers to take out, and I'm sure you're perfect for the job!"

The viral Pokemon floated listlessly in the air for a moment, without showing any reaction... then, it moved its head up and down as if nodding!

**ooooooooo**

Lorelei and Homura stopped cold in surprise as they saw the sky above them, initially calm and clear, beginning to get tinted in an innatural purple aurora borealis, which descended upon the island covering it in weird, discordant colours. The sky itself seemed to ripple like the sea under the eyes of the bespectacled Elite Four and the Fire-type expert...

"What... what's going on here? What's the big deal?" the aspirant Gym Leader asked. "Is this another one of Team Rocket's tricks, or something?"

"I... don't think so. I find it hard to believe they have the technology to do something like this." Lorelei answered, keeping a cool head even in front of such a surreal situation. "Rather... I'm afraid there might be a lot more than we thought around here. Team Rocket must have awakened something that was slumbering beneath this island without anyone else knowing it..."

"That's one more reason to hurry it up!" Homura exclaimed, unfettered by excessive thinking. "Ash and our friends might be in danger, if there really is a Legendary Pokemon around here! Come out, Rapidash!"

The young biker threw one of his Pokeballs, and a magnificent white stallion with a fiery red mane, a matching tail, and a sharp horn jutting out of his forehead, right between his sky-blue eyes came out of it, his iron-hard hooves cracking the rocky ground under him as he landed! Rapidash neighed and stopped right in front of his trainer, motioning to him to climb on his back... which Homura certainly was not going to wait for!

"Hold... hold on a second!" Lorelei tried to call him back, knowing all too well how dangerous the situation was going to become. "I don't think it's all that prudent..."

But it was like speaking to the wind. Without even stopping to listen to what the Elite Four had to say, Homura gently prodded his Rapidash, and the equine Pokemon neighed again, rose on his two back legs, and began running to the closest entrance to the cavern! Much to Homura's surprise, several black Pokemon resembling a bunch of huge letters with a single unblinking eye in the middle of their bodies popped out of several passageway between the rocks, in order to attack him... but the young man was not going to be daunted so easily, and his Rapidash charged right through the group of Unowns, dispersing them while shrugging off the barrage of beams of green energy that the strange creatures were shooting from their eyes...

"Gangway, guys!" Homura exclaimed, as his Pokemon kicked away the few Unowns daring enough to attack him. "I have no time to waste on you! There are people down there who need my help!"

The Unown, after a moment of stunned confusion due to the quickness with which they had been left behind, tried to reorganize themselves and attack again... but they had not calculated Lorelei and her Jynx's Blizzard attack! The Ice / Psychic Pokemon, in fact, had just come out of his Pokeball on a rather exasperated Lorelei's order... and had not wasted time before unleashing her most powerful attack on the mysterious alphabetical Pokemon! Several Unown were left frozen solid, encased in a block of solid ice, and the remaining ones had been forced to run away, at least for the moment...

"Nicely done, Jynx!" Lorelei complimented her Pokemon. "But I'm afraid we won't be able to stay here much longer... more of those Unown are coming!"

It was true - while Deoxys' strange aurora borealis was expanding itself above Quest Island, more of the disquieting creatures were popping up seemingly from nowhere, like mushrooms, and they looked like they were about to rush Lorelei and her Jynx en masse! Lorelei was fairly confident about the fact that her Pokemon could take them... but she knew she had no time to waste if she wanted to help Ash and his friends!

"Jynx!" the strange Ice / Psychic Pokemon exclaimed as she pointed the palm of her hand to the approaching Unowns and shot an Ice Beam that struck the ground right in front of them! A wall of ice immediately rose from the place that had been hit, and rose for several feet above the Unowns, who reacted by unleashingtheir Hidden Power attacks against the barrier, trying to shatter it as quickly as possible. Still, it was going to take time... more than enough for Lorelei and Jynx to lose them and reach Homura!

"Wait for us, guys, we won't be long now!" the Elite Four murmured to herself, hoping it was not too late...

**oooooooooo**

"What... on Earth is going on here? Darn..." Attila muttered as the tunnel he, along with several grunts, was in began shaking incontrollably. Both he and Hun, as soon as they were reasonably sure things were under control, had come to personally foresee the excavation, and now the blond bruiser was in a rather dangerous situation...

The grunts accompanying him were even less calm about it... and they were about to recall the Sandslash and the Dugtrio they had used to excavate, and beat a hasty retreat! "Aaaah! We... we have no idea! But we don't wanna stay here one second more!" one of them shouted, holding his hat as if that could save him from the falling rocks. "Attila, I'd suggest running away from here! Let's leave the Emerald and save our own skins!"

"Hah! Go on and run crying to mommy, chicken!" Attila grunted in annoyance as he produced a Pokeball. "Me, I'm not the kinda guy who leaves a job halfway done! Steelix, your turn! Smash those rocks with Iron Tail!"

"_STEEEEL_!" the enormous iron serpent appeared in front of his trainer with a powerful roar, that threatened to make the walls crumble... then, with a movement of his massive body, he sweeped the air in front of himself with his tail, striking the rocky wall that was still in Team Rocket's way! With a deafening sound of broken rock, several slabs fell down, turning into smithreens under the Steel / Ground Pokemon's irresistible power. The Team Rocket grunts were shocked at their superior's direct methods, as he seemed not to be daunted by the risk of being buried down there!

"So? Are you going to just stand there looking like idiots?" Attila roared. "Take your Pokemon and go! I'll take care of the rest!"  
"But... but sir, this is too dangerous..." one of the black-clad grunts tried to point out...

"Of course it's dangerous, you dimwit! You weren't expecting to sleep on clouds and eat caviar for lunch when you signed up for Team Rocket, were you?" Attila shouted back, loud anough to be heard over Steelix smashing the stone wall with his tail. "But we're too close to the Emerald for backing down now! Keep at it, Steelix! Time's not on our side!"

The iron serpent redoubled his efforts, striking relentlessly in order to break through the rocky barrier and reach their target... while the impressed and frightened Rocket grunts recalled their Pokemon and ran away in the opposite direction, under Attila's disapproving stare. Finally, after a few more hits, Attila and his steelix began feeling a breath of air in their faces, which was a hint that they were about to emerge somewhere...

**oooooooooo**

"Pikachu, attack with Volt Tackle! Sceptile, use Leaf Blade!"

"Starmie, hit with Water Pulse! And you, Psyduck... er... try to use Confusion, if you're not too confused yourself!"

"Mamoswine, use Ice Shard!"

"We're not leaving Dee-Dee to hog all the glory! Gabite, use Crunch!"

"Nidoking, use Earthquake!"

"Seviper... Poison Tail!"

"Now, Carnivine! Bullet Seed!"

"Go, Night Sky! Shock them with a nice Thunder Fang!"

As Lance and his Dragonite dashed from one cell to the other and freed as many prisoners as they could, unhindered by the Team Rocket grunts who were too afraid of them to attempt anything... Ash and his friend were giving it all they had, and defeating all the enemies in rapid succession! Nothing seemed to be able to stop them... but Ash and his friends knew all too well that this was only a temporary diversion, and that tougher challenges were sure to come soon, with the Team Rocket executives taking center stage! Furthermore, as the battle was continuing, strange purple lights had begun to filter inside Team Rocket's underground lair, causing many of the trainers to worry. Pikachu himself stopped his seemingly-unstoppable rampage through the Team Rocket lines to look at the weird luminescence... and Miyu, who was standing close to her faithful Mightyena, seemed to freeze in place, her pale face distorted in fear, and her eyes wide. What little colour her face might have had had now drained away...

"What the... Pikachu, what's going on?" Ash asked, turning to the electric mouse in worry. Pikachu seemed to be hypnotized and out of it, and a massive and enraged Shiftry tried to take advantage of that and sneak attack him... only for Sceptile to intercept him with a well-timed and super-effective X-Scissors attack, that sent the Grass / Dark type tumbling to the ground!

"_Pika... chu... pika... pi..._" Pikachu murmured, bringing one of his small forepaws to his head as if he was suffering from an headache, while Ash bent towards him in order to understand what was going on.

"Huh? What's the matter with the lady there?" Ursula asked, turning to Miyu while her Gabite and Brock's Rhyhorn were holding their own against a Golbat and a Bronzor.  
"I... have no idea..." the dark-skinned boy answered. All the trainers distracted themselves from their respective battles, and turned to Miyu in order to see what was going on with her. The aspirant Dark-type Gym Leader was swaying as if she had been drunk, muttering something that only Dawn, who was the closest to Miyu, managed to hear.

"He... is calling to us... ever since we arrived here... he... " she murmured.

Th blue-haired girl was visibly and understandably confused, and lightly shook Miyu in order to bring her back to reality. "What... what are you trying to say, Miyu? Who is calling to us?" she asked. "Do you hear something we can't..."

"He... he's getting closer!" Miyu exclaimed in a daze, jerking her head up as she visibly shook, to the point where her Mightyena got worried enough to nip at her skirt and pull in order to make Miyu snap out of it. The Dark-type trainer shook her head and shuddered, blnking twice while she tried to focus... but by then, all the other trainers had understood that something was not right, and as soon as Lance's Dragonite was done with freeing the hostages, he turned in the direction the small team of trainers had come from, feeling something strange coming... and alien an foreboding presence that sent an awful chill down the mighty dragon's spine!

"Something is really not right here... something very weird is going on on this island!" Gary stated, as Ash looked around himself in worry, and even the just-freed hostages were hesitating, to the point where Misty had to remind them of the situation they were in!

"Quick! Don't just stand there, you need to run away before more of those guys arrive!" Misty exclaimed before turning to Ash. "And you,Ash... what's the matter with you? Have you already seen this thing before?"

Ash couldn't help but nod. "Sure... it was during my journey in Hoenn!" he answered with visible alarm. "Brock, you remember this as well, right?"

"Sure! This is just like when we visited LaRousse City... Drew's hometown!" the young man with the perpetually shut eyes answered, as he recalled the strange event. "This is just like when Deoxys and Rayquaza faced against each other... but then, this must mean that..."

"Deoxys? What are you guys talking about?" Dawn asked in alarm, while both Jessie and James repressed a shudder...

"Another one of those weird Pokemon that pop up everytime someone decides to make another Pokemon movie?" Jessie exclaimed. "I'm not exactly anxious to meet another one, you know!"

"Hehehee... I'm afraid you'll have to make your acquaintance with it very soon indeed!" a stridulous voice answered, as a well-known Team Rocket member, sporting a short purple goatee and a sneaky, untrustworthy air to his face, came forward, a vacant-looking Slowbro accompanying him! Just a little behind, Ariana was standing along with a menacing Tangrowth... and Proton, along with an odd-looking Weezing, and Archer, who had just let a massive Snorlax out of his Pokeball, were close behind as well! But the most shocking development was still to come - another creature was floating close to the Team Rocket group, and both Ash and Brock paled at the sight! There was no chance to mistake that alien-looking being, and its cold, unnatural eyes... It was obviously a Deoxys, an alien Pokemon that was born from a mysterious virus that had fallen on their planet along with a meteor, many years ago! Ash and Brock still remembered when they had met two of those Pokemon, who were trying to meet each other and had accidentally enraged Rayquaza, who had mistaken them for evil creatures!

"I... can't believe it..." Ursula stammered, finding herself unable to keep up her haughtiness in front of such a Pokemon. "What... what kind of Pokemon is that supposed to be? I... I didn't think such a thing could even exist!"

"And instead, as you can see... it does exist, and it will become one of Team Rocket's best weapons!" Prof, Sebastian said, emerging from the darkness, an hand raised and an index finger pushing his glasses on the bridg of his nose. "Let me introduce you to... the Pokemon who cost me so many years of study, and so many sleepless nights spent analyzing him! Deoxys, the DNA Pokemon, an extraterrestrial being that somehow ended up on Earth in the form of a virus enclosed in a meteor! But what I truly care about... is the fact that this is an incredibly powerful Pokemon, capable of adapting itself to many environments and taking different Formes according to the opponent it is facing! And soon... you will get a sample of its power! So, who wants to see Deoxys' powerful first-hand?"

"It was him..." Miyu stated as she looked at the mysterious alien Pokemon. "It was him who was calling out to me... I don't know how I did it... but I did hear him! There is no mistaking it!"

"Might..." her faithful Mightyena growled, baring her teeth to the mighty Deoxys even though she knew she was horribly outmatched, in spite of her Dark type having the advantage over Psychic...

"Oh, but it doesn't end here, no sir!" Ariana said sweetly as she motioned to her Tangrowth to get close to her, while she kept her glance on Misty. "Because, you see, we just happen to have a beef with you kids! What about it, carrot-top? Let's settle our score from that unfortunate incident in Chrono Island, shall we?"

Misty was not going to get intimidated, and both her Starmie and her Psyduck stepped forward to face the walking mass of vines! "Well, you just need to ask! And you, Psyduck... maybe you should sit this one out, okay? I'm not going to let you fight against a Pokemon you're weak against!" the redheaded Gym Leader stated, and the clumsy duck Pokemon quacked in confusion as he was recalled in his Pokeball, leaving only her Water / Psychic starfish Pokemon to face Tangrowth.

"Now that I think of it... we have a score to settle from Fortune Island as well, my friend!" Petrel stated, as his Weezing kept his vacant stare upon Brock's Rhyhorn. "We didn't fare that well last time, no doubt about it, but this time, I've come prapared!"

Brock seemed not to care about Petrel's boasting, and limited himself to giving his Rhyhorn order to stand ready... and the rhinoceros-like Pokemon grunted and affirmative as he raised his powerful, battle-scarred stone horn!

"Well, I don't think I've ever seen you, but if you want a fight, I'm game." Gary stated nonchalantly as he got ready to face Proton and his Slowbro. "My Nidoking just needed a worthy opponent to clean up the cobwebs!"

Proton shrugged as his Pokemon got ready to unleash his powerful Psychic-type attacks on Gary's Nidoking. "Well, I don't really care one way or another. Come and get us, if you think you can handle us!"

"Which means... I'm the last one to choose my opponent." Archer stated, glaring cunningly at the team... and then picking out the one who looked the weakest, which happened to be Dawn and her Mamoswine. "And I choose you, little girl! Let's see how you fare against my Snorlax."

"_SNORRR-LAX_!" the huge Pokemon grunted, raising a leg in the air like a sumo wrestler. For a moment, Dawn felt dwarfed by her opponent's sheer size... but she quickly got her act together and got ready to fight!

"Fine, then... Mamoswine, it's time to take the spotlight!" the blue-haired pre-teen answered. Sebastian glared at the scene in satisfaction... and then turned to Ash and Lance!

"Oh, well, well, well... the Champion of the Kanto and Johto Leagues, and the winner of the latest Sinnoh conference! What better guinea pigs to test my Deoxys' power on?" the evil scientist pompously boasted. "This is going to be fun indeed... once you fall to Deoxys, the rest of the world will see that Team Rocket is nothing to be trifled with!"

Ash grit his teeth as his Sceptile got ready... but this time, Ash decided it was time to let his powerful Grass-type rest. "Er... sorry, Sceptile, but I think you need to take a break for now!" the young aspiring Pokemon master said. The Grass-type Hoenn started frowned, looking like he was disappointed for a split second... but he accepted his trainer's call and let himself be reabsorbed in the containing sphere. After thinking about it for a second, Ash took another Pokeball out and looked at it for a while before throwing it. "Okay, I'll trust you to handle this, Infernape... you're one of my strongest Pokemon, I know you'll do your best! Ursula, Miyu, Team Rocket! Take the hostages to the exit, we'll cover you! Go, Infernape!"

"Ugh... okay, we'll settle for this, for once..." Jessie decided not to argue pointlessly. "But do remember that we have a beef with those scoundrels as well!"

"Try not to get killed, you guys! Especially you, Dee-Dee!" Ursula warned. "You still owe me a rematch!"

With a joyous war cry, the Fire / Fighting chimp appeared in front of Ash and took position in front of the towering Deoxys, hitting his own chest with his fists and spraying blazes from theflames that wreathed his fur. He looked just as ready and determined as when he was about to take down his hated former trainer, and even if it was under Sebastian's thrall, Deoxys seemed to be intimidated for a second... but this all went away soon, and the evil scientist began smirking again.

"Hmm... an Infernape, huh? Sure, I've seen what he could do at the Sinnoh conference, but do you really thin he'l amount to anything, in front of my magnificent Deoxys? Let me tell you, I have my doubts about it!"

"In fact, Ash won't be fighting this on his own!" Lance said, as he and his Dragonite joined the winner of the Sinnoh conference. "Ash, let's do this together! It might be a very powerful Pokemon, but if we double-team it, even it is going to have trouble keeping up!"

"Alright, Lance! Pikachu, Infernape, are you two ready?" Ash asked, to which the firey ape nodded an affirmative. Pikachu pointed to Deoxys and squeaked, as if he wanted to call for Ash's attention on the alien Pokemon.

"_Pika pi! Pika pika.. chuuuu_!"

"What are you saying, Pikachu? You think we might have a chance at freeing Deoxys from that guy's control?" Ash asked... and when the Electric-type mouse confirmed that, the raven-haired boy adjusted his hat and got ready for the battle! "Well... on one side, this makes things alittle more complicated, but on the other, it simplifies them! We'll get Deoxys free from its mind control, and then we'll see who's laughing!"

"Heheheee... you look very confident, brat!" Sebastian affirmed. "But this won't avail you against a Pokemon such as Deoxys! Have a taste of its prodigious power!"

The alien Pokemon let out a loud, cacophonic battle cry and launched itself at Infernape, performing a devastating Zen Headbutt attack, its head lowered and glowing in an iridescent aura of psychic energy! Undaunted, Infernape reared his left fist back, and a scarlet flame lit up around it...

After doing a quick calculation, Ash waited for Deoxys to be close enough before giving the order! "Now, Infernape! Stop it in its tracks with Fire Punch!"

Infernape roared and swung his burning fist forward, striking Deoxys when it as just a few inches away for hitting! A deafening blast resonated all around when the two attacks clashed against each other, sending blinding flashes in all directions, and for several seconds, the two Pokemon remained in a stalemate as they pushed against each other... but in the end, it was all resolved in a draw when Infernape and Deoxys were forced backwards. However, Infernape appeared to have felt the blow a little more, since he remained there, nursing his punching arm... and Deoxys made good use of these few seconds to change Forme, becoming wider, more clumsy-looking and more robust.

"Heheheee... as I said, Deoxys can transform to adapt to any opponent it is faced with!" Sebastian gloated as the battle raged on all around him. "This is its Defense Forme, which sacrifices attacking power for better defensive abilities! Let's see how you fare against it!"

"Every Pokemon has a weakness, we just need to find Deoxys and use it." Lance calmly retorted. "Dragonite, use Dragon Rage!"

The orange dragon spread his wings, raised his antennae above his head, and breathed out a barrage of blue flames that Deoxys tried to parry with its oversized arms... but much to Sebastian's displeasure, Deoxys' defense was useless against Dragon Rage, an attack that ignores the target's resistance. Infernape breathed out a Flamethrower attack, pushing back the viral Pokemon somewhat, and Pikachu unleashed a Thunderbolt upon it, but Deoxys managed to get away and minimize damage...

**oooooooooo**

"Starmie, use Rapid Spin! Don't let Tangrowth get a hold on you!" Misty exclaimed, trying to keep her prize Pokemon away from the Grass-type Pokemon and his crushing vines. Starmie quickly spun on itself, and managed to wriggle free of the grasping tentacles, but Ariana didn't allow it a chance to reorganize itself.

"Don't let that bother you, Tangrowth!" the female executive ordered with a nasty grin. "Use Power Whip, now!"

Tangrowth leapt up and began spinning on himself as well... then, he swept down and struck Starmie with both of his vinelike arms, slamming it upon the ground with such strength that Misty grit her teeth and shuddered in fear! Luckily, the Water Psychic type was quick to climb up again, and was ready to fight back a second later.

"Hehehee... what's the matter, red? Your Starmie looks a little out of it to me!" Ariana gloated, as her Tangrowth whipped the ground twice in order to emphasize his eagerness to fight on...

After checking that Starmie was still capable of fighting, Misty smirked back at the Team Rocket executive. "Oh, don't worry about it, were just getting started! And soon, we will show you what we are really made of! Starmie, Recover!"

The shining gem in Starmie's core glowed, and the strange starfish Pokemon looked invigoraed, despite the super effective blow it had just taken. Then, moving its many appendages, it started floating towards Tangrowth once again...

**oooooooooo **

"Rhyhorn, keep up the defence! Don't let his attacks land!" Brock called to his Rhyhorn, who was trying to get away from Slowbro's attacks. Grunting in annoyance, as he was much more used to attacking than defending himself, Rhyhorn squatted low on the ground, trying to find a way to dodge or block Slowbro's attacs.

"Hehehee... trying to defend yourself? This is kinda hard for a Rhyhorn to do, isn't it?" Petrel taunted Brock. "But you're willing to try, I will not be the one to stop you from doing that! Tell you what, it might actually be fun! Okay, Slowbro... give him a taste of your Psychic attack!"

"_Slowbro..._" the dull-witted Psychic type murmured as he was bathed in a strange blue aura and unleashed a discharge of mental energy towards the rocky rhinoceros, pushing him back for several metres and shattering his Protect. Then, before the Ground / Rock type could get his act together and attack again, Slowbro used another attack, this time a powerful Water Gun that struck Rhyhorn in the face and caused him to roar in pain and distress. However, Brock was not the kind of person to give up that easily... he knew his Rhyhon still had quite a few moves to use, and he was going to make use of them!

"Fine, let's take another approach, then..." the dark-skinned young man answered. "Rhyhorn, stop him in his tracks with a Rock Slide!"

The scarred rhinoceros-like Pokemon grunted an affirmative, and his slit-like eyes lit up as he stamped his wide feet on the floor! A barrage of fist-sized rocks fell down from the ceiling and rained down upon Slowbro, who desperately tried to defend himself using the shellfish that had attached itself to his tail... but even so, he was unable to completely avoid damage, and he was slammed several times and brought to his knees! "Excellent, Rhyhorn! Now... keep attacking with Strength!"

Rhyhorn was more than happy to oblige, and after taking a little bit of wind-up, he launched himself at Slowbr with all of his strength, hitting him with his horn and causing his opponent to wobble dangerously! However, Slowbro managed to stay on his feet, and Petrel grit his teeth in irritation.

"Hmph... I have to admit that, kiddo, you're not halfway bad. But this is just a sample of what my Slowbro can do... and now, the kiddie gloves are off! Get ready, Slowbro! We're giving it all we've got now!"

**oooooooooo**

The battle between Gary's Nidoking and Proton's Weezing was getting nowhere fast - both Pokemon were resistant to each other's attcks and seemed to be evenly matched in strength, and neither seemed to be able to inflict a decisive blow upon the other. Even Nidoking's powerful Earthquake attack wasn't going to be any good against Weezing and his Levitate ability, and the gas-filled Pokemon could not envenom the final form of a male Nidoran with his noxious fumes. However, of the two trainers, Gary seemed to be able to better keep his cool, even as Weezing resorted to direct attacks to break through Nidoking's defences.

"Now Nidoking... attack him with Double Kick!" the young trainer-turned-reseacher stated. Nidoking waited for the gas-filled Pokemon to close the distance somewhat... then, he dodged the Body Slam Weezing was about to hit him with, and struck back with a vicious pair of kicks, one of which lifted Weezing in the air some, with the following one sending the Poison-type flying towards a wall! Weezing grunted in surprise and pain, but managed todo a spectacular maneuver in midair in order to face his opponent once more!

"Heh... my Weezing won't go down that easily! And now... Weezing, counter with Flamethrower!" Proton ordered wih a malicious grin, which the Poison Gas Pokemon repeated in an eerie manner. Then, Weezing lowered himself a little, took a deep breath, and blasted Nidoking with a torrent of crimson flames that erupted from his open mouth, causing the Poison / Ground type to flinch and fall to the ground with a pained grunt!

"Take care, Nidoking!" the young man exclaimed, while his Pokemon got up, nursing a slight burn on his left forearm. Weezing regarding his opponent with mocking grin on his usually dour faces, as he gained a little more altitude and got ready to attack again. "Heh... you Team Rocket guys sure don't hold back! I didn't think they had such skilled trainers in their ranks." Gary stated, getting his sarcastic tone back.

"And this is just the beginning of what my Weezing can do!" Proton smirked as he adjusted his black hat on his head. "Your turn again, Weezing! Hit him with Double-Edge, now that he's weakened!"

"Weak or not... my Nidoking is still more than a match for you!" Gary replied. "Don't get intimidated, Nidoking, I know you're stronger than that!"

Despite the pain in his scalded arm, Nidoking trusted his trainer and successfuly defended himself, batting away Weezing before the gas-filed Pokemon could reach him... and the battle was on again...

**oooooooooo**

"Mamoswine, use Ice Shard!"

"Snorlax... Body Slam!"

Both massive Pokemon launched themselves at each other and clashed violently, with Dawn's Mamoswine sporting a thin veil of ice covering his tusks, and Snorlax using his enormous belly as a battering ram! The clash was tremendous, to the point where both trainers could feel the earth shaking under their shoes as Mamoswine and Snorlax ran into each other...

But as powerful as Dawn's Mamoswine was, the senior Team Rocket executive's Snorlax was definitely better trained, and had managed to put a lot more oomph in his Body Slam attack. The enormous boar flinched as he bellowed in pain, and dropped down on is hind legs, with the blue-haired pre-teen running to her Pokemon in order to see if he was alright...

"Mamoswine, how are you?" Dawn asked. "Man, what a powerful blow... but how is it that he managed to resist our Ice Shard attack?"

"_SWIIIINE!_" the massive boar grunted, getting ready to attack again... but with a gesture of her arm, Dawn motioned for him not to rush headlong.

As Snorlax stood on guard again and patted his massive belly, the Rocket executive combed his hair back and answered Dawn's question. "It's all very simple, actually, little girl... Snorlax's special ability, Thick Fat, allows him to withstand high or low temperatures... which means, he takes less damage from Fire or Ice type moves! And unless I'm wrong, your Mamoswine's Ice Shard is an Ice-type move! Hehehee... and now, let's see if your Pokemon can withstand this! Come on, Snorlax! Trample her with a Rollout attack!"

With a grunt, Snorlax took a few steps forward before curling into a ball and launching himself at Mamoswine, transformed into a rolling ball of muscles and fat! Alarmed, the gigantic boar tried to move aside, but he was too slow in doing so, and he was struck on the side by Snorlax's immense weight, causing him to lose his balance! The fat sleepyhead Pokemon rolled backwards for a while, trying to attack his enemy with even greater power... but this time, both Dawn and her Pokemon were ready for him!

"Alright, if his is how you want it..." the blue-haired girl told herself. "Mamoswine, use Endure! I know you can do it!"

Trusting his trainer's judgement, Mamoswine planted his massive legs on the ground and lowered his huge tusks, putting himself in a defensive position in order to withstand the dreadful impact. With a frightening slam, Snorlax hit his opponent head-on, with even greater power than the earlier Rollout... but this time, Mamoswine managed not to be dragged off, and remained anchored to the ground, while his opponent rolled away to try another time...

"Now, Mamoswine! Use Earthquake!" Dawn exclaimed. The mammoth-boar stood on his rear legs, than landed, shaking the ground with his terific weight and sending a powerful shockwave straight at the still-rolling Snorlax, who could do nothing to withstand the hit! Much to Archer's disappointment, the Normal-type was hit and propelled upwards by the sheer power of Mamoswine's Earthquake attack, and while he flailed in midair, trying to regain his fighting position, a nasty glint appeared the mammoth-boar's eyes as Dawn gave a new order!

"And now... Avalanche!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed crisply. Mamoswine quickly moved his head from one side to the other, and a powerful hail of jagged pieces of ice fell down upon Snorlax, mercilessly striking him in mid-air! In the face of such a relntless attack, even Snorlax's Thick Fat ability couldn't do all that much... and in fact, only a few moments later, Snorlax was violently slammed on the ground and repeatedly struck by the falling blocks of ice, becoming stunned for a few seconds as Archer grit his teeth in annoyance.

"Nicely done!" Dawn cheered. "Then, I was right... Avalanche becomes more powerful if the Pokemon using it has just taken damage... and that Earthquake was just what I needed to launch Snorlax up in the air, where I was sure he could not defend himself! Great job, Mamoswine!"

"_MAMOOOOO!_" the giant boar trumpeted in approval. Archer furrowed his brow, as his Snorlax uneasily stood back on his feet...

**oooooooooo**

"Hehehee... what's the matter? Not feeling so confident now? You have no defence in front of Deoxys' metamorphic powers, huh?" Sebastian asked mockingly, seeing that Ash's Pikachu and Infernape, and Lance's Dragonite weren't doing all that much against the alien Pokemon. In fact, every time they managed to score a decent hit, Deoxys' spontaneous regeneration managed to undo all damage, and as a result, their enemy remained strong, while they began tiring out... And as if that wasn't enough, the enemy changed his shape according to the strategies Ash and Lance used, adapting himself in a few moments!

"_Pika pika... CHUUUU!_" Pikachu exclaimed as he unleashed a powerful electrical discharge that struck Deoxys' chest, causing it to falter. Infernape and Dragonite followed up with a Flamethrower and a Dragonbreath respectively, and Deoxys was slammed upon the wall of the underground base... but it quickly stood up again, and Ash and Lance saw, much to their chagrin, that the damage was already beginning to heal up. "_Pika..._" Pikachu commented as he shook his head, hs ears perked up as if he was epecting to hear something from the alien being...

"We're getting nowhere..." Ash stated, clearly worried about the whole thing. The battle was reaching a stalemate, and was getting terribly long... "We need to find another way, or we will never be able to defeat Deoxys..."

As if the viral Pokemon had heard him, Deoxys once again changed Forme, taking on a new one that looked even more lethal and formidable, wih several spikes jutting out of several places in its body... which Ash correctly guessed to be the attack-oriented Forme. However, there was no time to think about it: another Zen Headbutt from Deoxys struck both Pikachu and Infernape, launching them away without them being able to do anything to fight back! Both Pokemon landed painfully on the floor of the wrecked room that had up until a few minutes ago been Team Rocket's prison block... and Sebastian laughed again when Dragonite tried to strike back with a Wing Attack, only to have Deoxys switch to his Defence Forme again and swat him away with a simple movement of its arm.

"Pikachu! Infernape!" Ash exclaimed as two of his strongest Pokemon slowly picked themselves up from the floor. A familiar red aura had flared up around the Fire / Fighting type monkey, a sign that his Blaze ability had activated... but considering what they were up against, even the ever-confident Ash wasn't so sure that it wold be enough to turn the tide of the battle. They needed to find another way to defeat Sebastian and the alien Pokemon..

"If only we could talk to Deoxys... or at least contrast that madman's mind control n it..." Lance murmured to himself. The dragon tamer stopped himself for a moment, as something dawned upon him. "Hold on a second... mind control, I said? Hmm... maybe there is a chance to save both Deoxys and ourselves, after all... but before that, we need to hold him back long enough to make an attempt!"

Now, Deoxys was taking on a sleeker, more dynamic Forme, obviously designed for speed, and SEbastian, oblivious to what was going on in Lance's head, gave a new order to his thrall. "Hehehee... now, let's see if you can keep up with it! Deoxys... leave them breathless!"

Almost faster than the eye could see, Deoxys dashed towards its opponents... but unfortunately for him, this wasn't the first time Ash and Lance had faced a similar attack!

"If you think you can impress us with your speed, you've got another thing coming!" Ash exclaimed. "Pikachu, use Swift!"

"Dragonite, use Aerial Ace!"

The two Pokemon struck together, Pikachu by launching a barrage of star-shaped projectiles, and Dragonite by swooping down upon Deoxys and whipping it with his overtaking wings! The DNA Pokemon's breath-taking speed availed it nothing in this case, and both moves struck him at the same time! Deoxys wasn't damaged all that severely, but it was stunned long enough for its opponents to reorganize themselves and come up with a new attack strategy! Irritated, Sebastian decided that it was time to pull out all the stops and take out all the annoyances right then and there...

"Tch... alright then, if this is how you want it... so be it!" he stated. "Deoxys, take on your Attack Forme and strike them own with Zen Headbutt!"

"That's just the way I wanted it!" Lance murmured to himself, before yelling out an order, this time towards Ash! "Now, Ash! Deoxys has dropped its guard!"

"Sure!" Ash exclaimed readily. "Infernape, attack now! Use Flare Blitz, full strength!"

As the enemy's Zen Headbutt got closer and closer, the brave monkey Pokemon roared fiercely and launched himself at the alien Pokemon, turning himself into a flaming bullet! Several ed and orange bolts of light darted in all directions when the two mighty attacks clashes on each other... and, much to Sebastian's surprise, Infernape's Flare Blitz managed to overpower Deoxys' Zen Headbutt, smashing through the barrier of psychic energy that the alien Pokemon had raised around itself and striking it head-on! The virus' eyes bugged out in an expression of pain and surprise, as Infernape dragged him along and slammed him on the wall behind it, literally putting him through the bedrock! Deoxys writhed, trying to escape the terrifying blow... but Infernape countered by putting even more effort into his attack, plunging his opponent deeper and deeper into the wall! Finally, Infernape broke the constrast and somersaulted backwards, landing close to Ash, who gave him a thumbs-up in approval!

"Nicely done, Infernape! Now that was a good blow!" the young boy exclaimed.

"Hmph... what do you think you have done?" an annoyed Sebastian asked. "If this was another Pokemon, I would have reason to be worried... but this is Deoxys we're talking about! He can recover from any damage in a matter of seconds! You are just delaying an inevitable defeat, so you'd better just give it up!"

"I don't think so!" Lance answered bravely. "Now, Ash... it's Pikachu's turn!"

"What?" Ash asked in surprise. "And... what could Pikachu do, right now? I mean, his attacks would be almost ineffective against Deoxys..."

"Trust me... a direct attack won't be necessary!" Lance answered. "But you have to hurry up... Deoxys cannot move as long as it is regenerating, but it won't be that way for long!"

"Well... alright then!" Ash answered. "Now, Pikachu! Get close to Deoxys and hit it with Thunder Wave!"

The electric mouse, still a little unconvinced, quickly climbed up the rocky wall and reached Deoxys, with Sebastian wondering to himself what that insignificant Pokemon was trying to do... and he got his answer, in the worst possible way, when Pikachu climbed on the still-stunned Deoxys' head and released a powerful Thunder Wave in its face, holding tight for several seconds! Sebastian grit his teeth once again, wondering what the point of that move was... and Pikachu jumped away, landing on his feet after a couple of acrobatic maneuvers.

"Well? What was the point of this?" the Team Rocket scientist asked point-blank. "It doesn't matter how much you manage to damage Deoxys, it just needs some time to repair the damage, and attack again! Don't you see that he can take as many of your attacks as he wants?"

"Sure... this is assuming we were aiming to overpower it, which we weren't." Lance explained. "Why don't you pay a little more attention to what your Pokemon is doing right now?"

Now harboring a bad feeling, professor Sebastian looked in Deoxys' direction, just in time to see it get free from the rocks it had been embedded in by Infernape's Flare Blitz. It was clear that the barrage of attacks had done its damage, as the alien Pokemon was not moving in that robotic manner anymore, and was instead looking around in puzzlement, not understanding what was going on and why it was there... "Deoxys?" Sebastian uncertainly called to it. "Deoxys, can you hear me? Are you alright? Now, resume attack! Take your Attack Forme and smash them to paste, now!"

But the DNA Pokemon did not react as the evil scientist wanted it to. Deoxys lowered its gaze, as if asking itself how that pitiful human dared order it around... and in a moment of pure terror, Sebastian saw that Deoxys' eyes had lost that robotic gleam, and that he had lost control of the mighty creature! "W-what? This... this cannot be! You... you broke my mental control over Deoxys? How... how did you manage to do that?"

Ash was asking himself the same question, in fact, even though he had correctly guessed that it was thanks to Pikachu's Thunder Wave attack... and luckily enough, Lance provided an explanation. "It's all quite simple, in fact... all mental control devices you of Team Rocket use to gain control over Pokemon are, in fact, based upon electricity. Long story short, they alter a Pokemon's nerve pulses and force them to obey your orders. thought that trasmitting another electrical shock directly to Deoxys' nervous system might have been enough to cancel the mind control, possibly using a moderate-voltage attack such as Thunder Wave. I'm glad to see I was right on the money." The dragon tamer affirmed with a slight smile.

Ash, Pikachu and Infernape nodded, impressed by the Kanto Champion's quick thinking... but the explanation was hardly what Sebastian and his minions had to worry about at that particular moment, as Deoxys was now free from their control and seemed not to have taken kindly to the liberties Team Rocket had taken with it! The four executives, without caring whether they were winning or losing their fights, interrupted everything they were doing and turned to Sebastian.

"This is bad... we cannot control Deoxys any more!" Archer exclaimed, recalling his Snorlax just as the sleepy Pokemon had received a barrage of blows from Dawn's Mamoswine. "Professor, we're done for at this point! We have to think of salvaging what we can!"

"Wait... wait a second!" the Team Rocket scientist tried to protest, with Ariana and Petrel already dragging him along. "We... we cannot give up such a Pokemon! Do... do you understand what we'd be missing out on? We need to recover control of Deoxys, right now!"

"And how? By hypnotizing him with a pendulum?" Petrel snarked. "To heck with it... for now, we have both the Ruby and the Emerald! It's an acceptable result, we'll recover the rest later on!"

"Right, for now, we have to make ourselves scarce!" Proton stated. "Weezing, cover our retreat with Smokescreen!"

The gas-filled Pokemon breathed in, and unleashed a deep cloud of noxious fumes that clouded everybody's vision, forcing them to fall back, powerless to do anything as Team Rocket got away amidst much protesting from the outraged Sebastian. In all the chaos, the sound of the evacuation warning was heard... and when the stinking cloud dissolved a few seconds later, Ash and his friends could only glare as they were left, along with Deoxys, in the desolate room in which Team Rocket used to keep their prisoners. The young boy snapped his fingers in frustration, disappointed for letting the executives escape once again.

"Darn!" he exclaimed. "Just a little more and we would have caught them!"

"Pika chu!" was Pikachu's annoyed commented, as the yellow mouse kept his fists on his hips and glared at the place Sebastian was standing upon. Even Misty, Brock, Gary and Dawn weren't very happy about letting the Team Rocket commanders get away like that...

Still, Lance didn't seem to mind that as much, and after recalling his Dragonite and complimenting him for his behaviour during that fight, he looked in Deoxys' direction: the viral Pokemon, now uninterested in taking its revenge on Team Rocket, was now giving Ash and his friends all of its attention, and was regarding them as if trying to decide what to make of them. Sure, it didn't look quite as angry, and in fact, it even appeared friendly...

"Erm... Deoxys, right?" Misty nervously stated as she and her Starmie approached the alien Pokemon. "We... are sorry for what happened! You had been captured by Team Rocket, and they were forcing you to do what you didn't want to do... but you're free now!"

The alien Pokemon regarded Misty with a curious expression on its nondescript face, before looking at Brock and his Rhyhorn, Dawn and her Mamoswine, Gary and his panting Nidoking... and finally, at Ash, Pikachu and Infernape, who were all standing in front of it with a slight smile. There was something peculiar about all of them, something that the space Pokemon, even with its supernatural senses, could not easily define. Something really unique, especially in that boy and his Pikachu. Sure, Deoxys hadn't seen many human beings in his life, but those ones had really left an impression on him...

But there was no time to say anything else. A strange buzzing sound filled the air, alarming all members of the team... and much to everyone's surprise, a bunch of Unown exploded out of their hideouts among the rocks and began swarming threateningly around them, their large emotionless eyes glaring at them in the darkness of the place! Dawn apprehensively clung to her Mamoswine, who pointed his sharp tusks at the alphabetical Pokemon... and even Deoxys seemed not to know what to make of the strange creatures!

"What... what on Earth are they doing?" Lance asked himself. "It looks like a dance or something..."

**oooooooooo **

Finally, just as the evacuation signal was getting louder, a final Iron Tail attack smashed down the wall that separated Attila from the treasure... and the Team Rocket affiliate, dusting himself off, stepped inside a small room with levigated walls of blueish-green marble, that seemed to have wonderfully resisted the injuries of time, decorated with strange representations of Legendary Pokemon... and there was something in the middle of the room that was far more interesting to the brawny Team Rocket agent: a large green gem, the size of a man's fist, laying upon a small altar on the other size of the room.

"Oh, here it is! And that makes two of them for us!" Attila said with a nasty laugh as he quickly walked over to the Emerald and grabbed it in his enormous hand. He was about to turn back and leave... when a large group of Unowns, seemingly coming out of nowhere, began swarming around his flabbergasted Steelix, who immediately tried to get rid of them by slamming them with his tail as they targetted him with relentless, but ultimately useless, Hidden Power attacks. The green beams were bouncing off of Steelix's metallic hide... but Attila was not about to just stand there and see whether Steelix could actually hold out that long, and wisely decided it was time to split!

"Darn, what do these things want?" he muttered to himself, gritting his teeth as an Hidden Power attack burned a chunk off the sleeve of his uniform. "Well, so much the worse for them! I ain't here for their entertainment! Steelix, use another Iron Tail! We have to keep these things away!"

The iron serpent was not about to let his trainer repeat that, and brought his tail forward in a lethal arc in front of himself, trampling the alphabetical Pokemon and scattering them around! Before others could come, Attila motioned for Steelix to followhim, and ran in the direction that the other Rocket grunts had taken just a moment earlier, hoping hewould soon find a way out...

**oooooooooo**

Lorelei and Homura were at the moment busy fighting a huge army of Unowns tha were advancing menacingly towards them... and even if the Elite Four's Cloyster and the young biker's Camerupt were doing a good job taking out the eldritch Pokemon, more of them appeared from everywhere...

**oooooooooo**

Miyu, Ursula and Team Rocket were in a similar situation... even as they had almost emerged from that maze of caverns and passages, a small army of Unowns was assaulting them from all directions, blocking their way and keeping the rescued trainers from reaching the surfce. Both the girls and the clumsy criminal trio were fighting valliantly... but the overwhelming number of enemies and the Hidden Power attacks coming from all directions had them worried...

A powerful Bug Buzz from Jessie's Yanmega managed to breach through the ranks of the Unown, forcing the disquiting Psychic-types to scatter and allowing the team and the freed hostages to run to safety... even though the strange aurora borealis created by Deoxys still hadn't faded away! Ursula and Miyu hanged back for a moment, just enough time to strike at the swarming Unowns with a Dark Pulse and a Stone Edge attack, respectively from Mightyena and Gabite... then, the two girls nodded to each other and, along with their Pokemon, followed Team Rocket and the hostages outside...

Only to discover, in the most unpleasant way, that the aurora was not the only thing darkening the skies at that moment... there was a gigantic, incredibly complex-looking skyship hanging overhead at a few dozen metres above the ground level, with several weapons mounted on the outside, shining plates of armor covering almost all of its outer hull... and a very well-known mirrored-R symbol painted on its side!

And there was no need for great imagination to understand what was going on...

"Oh, man, I can't believe it..." James whined in fear. "That... that woman is still around?"

**oooooooooo**

Even though Team Rocket had run away, things were still pretty confused, and even Deoxys seemed not to knowwhat to do about it. Ash and his friends kept their Pokemon close, so they could defend themselves had something dangerous happened... and yet, the Unowns continued moving around without any apparent reason to it, surrounding Deoxys like many worshippers bowing to an idol...

In the end, Deoxys decided it had had enough of that nonsense. With a shrill, cacophonic call, the evolved virus created a psychic barrier around itself, and while Ash and his friends got away in order not to get involved, it flew upwards and used a powerful Zen Headbutt, this time blowing a hole right through the ceiling and drilling through the rock, finally emerging in the feverishly colored sky! Deoxys flew upwards and, after casting a last, almost thoughtful, glance at the place where Ash and his friends were, it started rising towards the upper atmsphere, eager to return to its rightful home in space...

But the alien Pokemon could only rise so far before a beam of light, shining from above and behind it, struck it in its back and surrounded it in a yellowish aura, causing it to writhe in pain for a moment! Looking behind itself in a moment of pure terror, Deoxys saw the gigantic flying machine that had shot it, and that it was dragging the space Pokemon towards itself, as if it was an immense vaccuum cleaner! The alien Pokemon tried to get free... but despite its regenerative powers, the fight it had just come out of had drained it, and it could not oppose the pull for long. It managed to float awy some... but then, almost with a resignated sigh, Deoxys completely lost his strength, and the flying machine sucked it inside what appeared to be a containment room, with perfectly smooth and enormously resistant metal walls, under the merciless glare of several cameras that transmitted all images to the main bridge, where J and her men were watching in satisfaction!

"The subject has been secured, Miss J!" an operator said from a console. "Deoxys has been contained and will soon be placed under hibernation! It will not cause us any more problems!"

"Excellent!" The evil huntress stated. "This more than makes up for the poor showing at Knot Island! Our leader will be glad when he hears the news!"

Another operator, who was seated at another console in front of a black-and-white screen with several red lock-on sign flashing upon it, raised his head. "What do we do now with the interlopers, miss J? Do we have to unleash our new bombs on the island?"

The grey-haired woman smiled cruelly. "Of course. And since there are some... unwelcome competitors down there, we might as well make things easier on ourselves, don't you agree?"

The operator nodded wordlessly... and pressed a button, causing two large explosive charges to detach for the huge aircraft's underside and fall towards Quest Island...

...

...

*BOOOOOOOOOOM!*

A deafening blast came as soon as the bombs struck the ground, erupting in a pair of monstrous fireballs that brought down a part of the rocky mountain and sent seismic waves throughout the whole island, turning the night into day for several horrific moments... and inside Team Rocket's abandoned hideout, Ash and his friends were shaken around dangerously, huge pieces of stone falling from the ceiling all around them!

"Aaaaargh! What... what's going on now?" Misty exclaimed, her ears ringing from the tremendous explosion!

"I... I have no idea!" Brock answered, as he recalled Rhyhorn into his Pokeball. "But this place can't take much more of this! We have to get out before.."

With a rumbling noise, a part of the ceiling detached itselffrom above their heads and fell down... and in a moment where their actions were only dictated by their survival instinct, the trainers had to scatter in different directions, separating themselves just in time to avoid getting crushed by a huge falling rock! Ash was forced to slip in a narrow opening between two rocks when another barrage of rocks rained down dangerously close to him, separating him, Pikachu and Infernape from the rest of the team!

"Oh no... the cave is collapsing!" Brock exclaimed.

"Ash!" Misty exclaimed, trying to extend a hand to her friend... but the falling rocks made it too difficult to try and aid him, and the distance between the two was growing. Ashhad now been forced to get away and try to find another way out, running in the opposite direction with respect to his friends... and just as he tried to hold on to a wall in order to keep his balance, he got a nasty surprise as a rather large rock fell down and struck his left forearm, accompanied by the chilling sound of something cracking!

"AAAAARGH!" Ash couldn't hold back a pained scream as he knelt on the ground, rapidly clutching his now-broken arm with his free hand, as Pikachuand Infernape immediately ran to help him!

"_Pika pi!_" Pikachu squeaked, holding on to his trainer, who was on the ground in pain. Infernape looked up, seeing more rocks falling down... and his blazing aura flared around himself as he prepared to smash through the falling debris...

**oooooooooo**

"Ugh... Ash, Misty! Brock! Gary, Lance! Where are you, guys?" Dawn called out as she frantically ran through the collapsing tunnels, dodging the falling rocks. In the confusion, she had taken a different way than the rest of her friends, and now she was lost inside that maze, with little chance to find the rest of the team as she and Mamoswine tried to get to safety! Understanding that, because of his weight, he would only be a burden in such a situation, Mamoswine asked his trainer to recall him, which the blue-haired girl rapidly did... but soon after, she was forced to stop again as she found herself on the border of a tall cliff that seemed to have opened up in front of her out of the blue! Dawn looked down in fear, understanding that the chasm must have opened up only a few moments before... it was a drop of about thirty feet...

"Ah! Oh no... now what?" Dawn asked herself as she looked around searching for another way out... which was precluded from her as another huge rock began falling towards her! There was no way for Dawn to get away, unless...

Fighting back her fear, Dawn took a deep breath and jumped down the cliff in front of herself, keeping her body as straight as possible, just a split second before the huge rock fell on the place where she was standing! The blue-haired girl heard the deafening crash of stone upon stone, and felt her stomach rise to her throat... but solid ground came earlier than she expected, and Dawn managed to land on her feet... and promptly stumbled forward because of the speed she had taken in the fall! With a yelp, Dawn fell down face-first upon the rocky ground...

For a moment, she felt like the world was spinning around hr, before everything went black...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Wow, an almost literal cliffhanger! Hope you liked the battle and... well, if you wanna know how things will go, don't miss the next chapter of Heart Soul Adventures!**


	37. A Quest For Rescue

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hey, there!**

**Okay, let's keep this short, as I really have no time – finally, we get to see what happened to our friends, and whether they can leave Quest Island safe and sound! So, get ready… and take some time to tell me what you thought of his chapter! Happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 37 – A Quest For Rescue**

"Ugh... darn, what's going on now?" an irritated Petrel muttered as the island was shook from its very core by the vibrations. He and the other Team Rocket members had just reached the submarines they had used to transport the hostages and reach the island... and now, they were just waiting for Attila to come back, hopefully with the Emerald in his hands, to escape from the island. But now, Team Vicious' unexpected attack was putting the stability of their hideout in serious jeopardy, and there could have been a cave-in any moment now! They had to hurry it up, or they would have been buried down there. "What on Earth is Attila doing? Why hasn't he come back yet?"

"I reckon that fool wanted to get the Emerald at all costs..." Hun told herself, her cold glare affixed to the passages that brought to the former hideout of the criminal carter, as if she was expecting her partner in crime to come out of one of them any moment now. At least, that's what she hoped - it would have been annoying to lose a worthy minion such as Attila just because of his own stubborness!

For several seconds, nothing came out of the passages, as explosions and rumbling noises resonated inside the improvised port. Then, a rumbling noise not unlike that of steel scraping upon rock, invaded the cavern... and a split second later, Attila's Steelix, with his trainer standing proudly on top of it and holding a shining green gem in his hand, appeared from the nearest cave! Hun smirked in satisfaction as she saw that her colleague had just what Team Rocket had come for in the first place... and as soon as Steelix came close to the submarine, Attila dismounted and recalled the iron serpent in his Pokeball before getting on board with his prize in his hand!

"Well, about time you showed up!" Petrel muttered, finally allowing himself to sigh in relief. "What were you thinking? Everything is going to crumble here, and you go risk your own neck on your own?"

"These trivial matters can wait, Petrel." Archer answered. "What really counts is that we've got the Emerald. Two gems out of three. While it's not the optimal outcome, it is still an acceptable one. And now, let's get out of here before we are turned into hamburger! We'll abandon this base and report to Giovanni... after all, I think the results have been satisfying for now."

"Acknowledge, Sir Archer! We'll evacuate on the double!" the navigator exclaimed. As soon as he was sure everybody that counted was on board, he closed all doors and started up the engines, and soon after, the Team Rocket sub took to the sea, followed by the rest of the fleet and taking the four executives and the precious gemstone they had stolen along with it...

**oooooooooo**

The deafening sound of crumbling rock was still echoing in Misty's ears as the redhead climbed uncertainly to her feet, shaking her head in order to regain her bearings. The landslide had only lasted a few seconds... but her fear had made them look like hours, and now she was finding herself disoriented and confused. She coughed some dust out of her throat, then quickly recovered and looked around, trying to understand what to do now.

The view was not exactly encouraging - very little remained of the prison block Team Rocket kept their prisoners in, and now bent bars and pieces of broken concrete laid scattered on the ground, along with shattered lamps and torn black flags bearing the trademark R symbol, as if symbolizing that Team Rocket's reign on that island had come to a sudden end. Still, Misty didn't care about that at the moment... her friends were nowhere to be seen, and Misty feared they might have been buried by the landslide!

"Oh, no... Ash! Ash, Pikachu, where are you? Can you hear me?" she exclaimed, her heart pounding madly. Brock! Gary, Dawn, Lance! Please, tell me you're alright!"

She heard some coughing, and quickly turned in that direction, looking hard in an attempt to distinguish what was it about… and she felt an immense relief as she saw a familiar figure walking towards her, slowly but without giving the impression of being in trouble. Thanks to the faint light filtering through the cracks in the stone and what remained of the windows, Misty could see that it was Brock!

"Brock!" the redhead exclaimed. "Brock, are you alright?"

"Misty…" the young man murmured as he held an handkerchief pressed on his left eyebrow. It was only then that Misty saw that her friend was trying to plug a wound on his forehead, from which blood was pouring out. "I'm here, Misty! How are you?"

"I'm glad you're still alive, Brock…" Misty answered as he reached him. "But… you're bleeding, are you sure you're alright?"

"Don't worry, Misty, it's just a flesh wound… it will stop bleeding soon enough!" the Rock-type expert reassured her. "For now, we need to find Ash and the others… I can't see them here!"

"I know… I was jut looking for them right now!" Misty answered. "I hope they're alright… although, with all that's happened around here, I'm afraid something will surely have happened to them!"

Luckily, once again, Brock proved to be the brains of the team, and helped his travelling companion keep her cool. "Misty… don't worry, I'm sure they'll alright as well! After all, we'v been through worse, and we've always come out in one piece, right? Now… we just need not to lose our heads, and to think of a way to look for them, okay? I'm sure they can't have gotten that far…"

Misty took a pair of deep breaths, in order to keep her fear in check… then, she sighed and managed a small smile, in spite of the anguish gnawing at her. "A… Alright! Thanks for reminding me of that! So… what do you think we should do now?" she asked, feeling a little more relaxed.

Brock smiled himself and nodded. "There! That's better… now, first off, we have to be very careful of where we step on, some parts of the floor are at risk of crumbling…" he stated, looking around as he searched for the others, and hoping to find everyone safe and sound…

**oooooooooo**

"_Pika pi!_" Pikachu squeaked, pointing to the large rock that was falling from the ceiling, right above Ash, who was still lying in pain on the cavern's floor. The injured teen grit his teeth and widened his eyes as he saw the huge stone bearing down upon him… but luckily, before he could even start fearing for his life, his Infernape intervened, striking the huge rock with an accurate and powerful Mach Punch and shattering it! The pieces of stone were thrown around and bouncd harmlessly off the walls, leaving Ash and his Pokemon intact as Infernape elegantly landed on the bare rock, the flames around his body glowing faintly before they returned to normal.

Despite the searing pain in his left arm, Ash managed to smile and sit upright, his back to the wall. "Phew… Thanks, Infernape… You really saved my life just now! I promise that… ugh… as soon as we're out of here… I'll treat you to a double portion of your favourite Pokemon food! And that goes for you as well, Pikachu!"

"_Pika pi! Pika pika chu pika?_" the electric mouse asked, noticing his trainer's leftarm, which he was cradling close to his body. Infernape could see Ash was not well, but the young boy tried not to have them worry too much as he forced a smile.

"Heheheee… well, boys, I'd love to say I'm in top form, but… I'm afraid I've got a broken arm right here! Hehehee… Ow! Man, it sure hurts…" he answered, wincing as another jolt of pain went to his brain. "O… Okay, let's see… where are we now? I… don't think there are many chances our friends find us down here! We're in this dark place and we have little chance of them noticing us… Of course, unless…"

Pikachu and Infernape understood immediately: the electric mouse lit up his cheek pouches, and Infernape strengthened the flame above his ead, allowing his trainer to get a better look at the situation… and most importanty, to notice an escape way that the falling ocks had not obstructed, and that maybe would allow them to climb back to the upper levels!Now, it was just a matter of seeing whether he could do it with his left arm in that state…

Ash grit his teeth as he tried to stand the pain, and used his still-healthy arm to sustain his broken one as he climbed to his feet and motioned for his Pokemon to follow him. "Well, in this case… what are we waiting for, guys? We need to find Misty and the others… ugh… and hope they're alright as well!"

"_Pika!_" Pikachu answered in approval, while Infernape nodded and led the way to the upper floors…

**oooooooooo**

"Phew… wow… that really was way too close for comfort!"

Dawn slowly opened her eyes and shook her vertigo away, trying to orient herself and understand where she was now. At the moment, the blue-haired girl was lying face down on the rocky terrain, upon which countless pieces of rock were scattered. It was a damp and dark cavern, bathed in an almost unbearable heat, and it was too dark to clearly see what was around her. Still, she was glad to have escaped the landslide that had crushed the upper levels, but now her priority was to reunite with Ash and the thers, hoping they had escaped safely…

"Okay…" she told herself. "Looks like everything is okay for now… now, let's see about reaching Ash and the others…"

Dawn tried to stand up… and just then, a blinding, excruciating pain exploded in her legs, causing her to scream and collapse to the ground again, panting heavily!

"AAAAAGH! Ah… it… it hurts… what… ugh… what is… aaaaah…" she managed to stammer, before she burst into tears from the terrible pain. It was an horrific feeling, as if someone was trying to pull her legs out of thir sockets, making her nerves feel like they were on fire! For quite some time, Dawn remained there, lying on the ground and sobbing incontrollably as she tried to recover her bearings… and when she realized that she couldn't move her legs anymore, she grit her teeth and tried to raise her head just enough to see what had happened to her…

She immediately turned her glance away with a shudder, understanding just what was the matter. There was no blood, but her legs were still in a bad shape… and it didn't take a lot of imagination to understand what had happened. Sure, Dawn had managed to land on her feet… but the weight of her body, augmented by the speed of the fall, had caused the bones in her legs to break!

"Uuuugh… darn… I really… didn't need this…" Dawn murmured, trying to keep her fear and pain in check. She tried to drag herself forward with her arms, but her legs hurt too much, and she was forced to stop soon enough. And she wasn't going to go much further anyway, she reflected. "I… must find another way… ugh.. if only… I could reach my… Pokeballs…"

Struggling with the pain in her broken legs, Dawn managed to reach Piplup and Pachirisu's Pokeballs, before opening them with a flick of her hand. Immediately, the small penguin and the electric squirrel appeared right in front of their trainer, who managed to smile through her pain and give them instructions.

"Piplup… Pachirisu…" Dawn murmured, as her two Pokemon got to her, worry clearly shown on their faces. "Ugh… p-please… listen up… I'm not doing… ugh… too good… I… I'm injured… and I can't move… ai! Pachirisu… please l-look for Ash… and the others… Try to take them… here…"

"_Pachi!_" the vivacious Electric-type exclaimed without the slightest hesitation, before speed-climbing the rocks and getting to the place from where Dawn had jumped down. Piplup got closer to Dawn in an attempt to comfort her, and the girl smiled through the pain and caressed him on the head.

"It will be alright, Piplup… I'm sure… we'll get out of here!" Dawn managed to answer, her eyes still veiled over with tears. "Ash… and the others… ow… won't be stopped by this much, now will they? We've… ugh… gotten through many more things… We can do this… as well…"

"_Pip! Piplup!_" the cute penguin Pokemon chirped, before he got close to his trainer's legs and gently blowing a cold breeze upon them, in order to allow her to better stand the fractures. Dawn sighed in relief as the pain lessened considerably…

"Phew… thanks, Piplp…" she answered when the small penguin got back close to her face. Dawn managed to lift herself up a little by propping an elbow on the ground, and scratched Piplup on the head, keeping an eye shut. "Don't… worry, I'm sure Pachirisu… will be able to get help soon! We… won't stay here much longer, trust me!"

"_Piplup…_" the penguin-like Pokemon answered, hoping his trainer was right…

**ooooooooo**

"Ash, Pikachu! Gary, Lance! Dawn!" Misty called out as she looked here and there, at the same time minding her steps as not to cause another cave-in. The tunnel in which she and Brock were was quite damaged, and it would take little to put them all in danger again…

"Ash, Pikachu! Guys, where are you?" Brock called out, hoping to at least hear someone calling for help. But for several seconds, the cave appeared desolate, and Brock sighed despondently. "That's no good, we have to look for them in another way…"

"_Pikachu pi!_"

Pikachu's shrill voice, coming pretty much out of nowhere, had both of Ash's old travelling companions jump up about half a foot in the air, before they turned to see the small yellow rodent scurry out of a nearby tunnel, his small body bathed in a faint electric aura in order to allow him to see and be seen in the faint darkness. Hewas closely followed by Infernape… and, much to both Brock and Misty's relief, by Ash, who was looking quite well and smiling at Brock and Misty, despite the fact that he was cradling his left arm close to his chest.

"Hey, guys! You know… I could hear you shouting from where I was!" the young aspirant Pokemon Master jokingly said as he walked out of the tunnel, right behind his Pokemon. Needless to say, both former Gym Leaders – especially Misty - were very glad to see Ash and his friends alive and well.

"Ash! Glad to see you're okay… Ash, your arm! What's the matter, are you hurt?" Misty asked, as she and Brock noticed the way Ash was holding his injured limb.

The young boy chuckled ironically, trying to downplay his injury. "Hehehee… well, let's just say there was a stone who had nothing better to do tha fall on my arm!" he answered. "I'm afraid I've got a broken arm…"

Brock, who was more of an expert in first aid, went to examine his younger friend an had him sit on the ground, his back leanng on to the wall behind him. "Hmm… looks like you're right on the money, Ash, and at the moment I have nothing on hand that might help reduce this fracture… I'm afraid we'll have to go for the more direct method, and mind you, it won't be painless…"

"I see…" Ash winced. "Well, do it all the same, Brock… I'll try to hold out! Pikachu, Infernape… try not to get scared, ok?"

Both Pokemon nodded, and Brock steeled himself for the rather unpleasant operation he was about to carry out… then, he placed his hands upon Ash's broken arm and straightened it with a brief yet sudden movement! Ash immediately grit his teeth and groaned for the intense pain, fighting off a sense of vertigo that threatened to make him lose consciousness… then, luckiy, the pain faded to an acceptable level, and Ash leaned with his back on the wall as Misty sat down next to him.

"Owww… I'm… I'm okay, Misty… everyone… it was… just a moment…" the young boy murmured. "The m-most importantthing now… is to find Dawn, Gary and Lance! They could be.. somewhere down there…"

"I'll go look for them, Ash, so don't worry! I'll find them and make sure they're alright." Brock reassured him, an hand placed on his younger friend's shoulder in order to convince him to stay seated. "Misty, you stay here with Ash and his Pokemon, and make sure he doesn't d anything reckless! With his arm in those conditions, it's better not to risk it."

"Alright, Brock! Leave it to me, I'll hold the fort here!" Misty answered. "Please, be careful… and try to find them!"

Brock smiled and gave a thumbs-up, keeping his eyes closer as always. "Don't worry, Misty, I'll be careful!" he affirmed. "I'm leaving Ash to you, don't allow him to do anything reckless, and keep him seated!"

"_Pika!_" the electric mouse squeaked.

"_FER!_" Infernape grunted, his ist held close to his heart.

"Hold… hold on a second, Brock!" Ash exclaimed as his friend began waking away to look for Gary, Dawn and Brock. "Wait… maybe I can help you out as well! I may have a broken arm… but that doesn't mean I'm suddenly useless, does it?"

Misty held him down, telling him to stay seated. "Ash, don't be stupid! I know you're worried about Gary and the others… but just trust Brock, he knows what to do! You have to stay here and not make your conditions worse."

"But… Misty!" Ash tried to protest, as much as he knew that his red-haired friend was right, and that pushing himself wouldn't have been good. "Maybe I could help Brock out a little… after all, four eyes see better than two, right? And then…"

"Ash." Misty ordered, ith the tone of a scolding mother. "You. Stay. Here. Got it?"

Ash blinked in surprise… then, feeling somewhat sheepish, he leaned with his back to the wall behind him and sat down, cradling his injured arm."O… Okay, mom!" he answered, halway between awe and sarcasm. "I'll be a good boy and wait for daddy to come home. Happy now?"

Despite everything, Pikachu managed to giggle to himself, whereas Infernape frowned in doubt, as if he understood that there was something more to the exchange betweenAsh and Misty, but he couldn't quite put his fnger on it. Misty, for her part, smiled and shook her head.

"Really, Ash… what do have to do with you?" she asked playfully. "You're always such a handful… but after all, that's one of the things I like about you!" She immdiately placed a hand in front of her mouth and widened her eyes: she had just let herself slip… with the result that Ash looked at her in surprise.

"M-Misty? What you like about… what do you mean?" Ash aske, understading that the discussion was veering into unfamiliar territory, to him at least. Misty was thankful that he couldn't see her blush in the dark cave, and shook her head in an attempt to make her slip-up pass off as nothing.

"Nothing! Nothing, really! I didn't mean anything by that!" she exclaimed, too frantically for Ash not to realize that there ws something more going on. Still, respecting the fact that Misty seemed unwilling to talk about it, he decided not to press anymore and sat to his friend's side together with his two Pokemon. He still would have liked to be able to go out there and look for the rest of his friends, but in the end, he understood that it was probably better to just stay quiet until help came.

"Really, Ash… your skill at putting yourself in dangerous situations never ceases to amaze me!" Misty said with an ironic chuckle. "Who knows how many times you've found yourself in a pinch while you were in Hoenn or Sinnoh, huh? And now you managed to break an arm as well… really, I am always the one who has to babysit you!"

"Hahaha. How funny, Misty." a vaguely annoyed Ash answered. Sure, Ash was rather easy to tick off, but to Misty, it seemed to just come naturally. "Well, there's no helping it, what's done is done! And by the way… I need to thank Pikachu and Infernape, we wouldn't have been able to calm down Deoxys without them! Really, for a moment, I was afraid… ow!"

"_Pikapi?_" a worried Pikachu asked as he saw his trainer wince and clutch his injured left arm. A rather sudden moveent of his shoulder had increased the pain yet again, leaving him breathless for a moment before he could regain his bearings.

"I'm… I'm okay, Pikachu! Really…" Ash answered, in an attempt to reassure both his starter and Misty. "I just did a sudden movement… but don't worry, I'll be okay!"

"Try not to move around too much, alright?" Misty told him. "And I hope a rescue team comes soon, too… I'm afraid the landslide trapped us inside these tunnels. Maybe we should start looking for a way out ourselves, as soon as we're all back together…"

**oooooooooo**

In another cavern, at the same time…

"Phew… darn, I think I saw my life flash before my eyes for a second there…" Gary murmured, picking himself off the ground and dusting himself off before taking a look around… and understanding the magnitude of what had just happened! Sadly, it looked like they still weren't out of the woods: several rocks of varying size had obstructed the tunnel he and Lance had come from, cutting them off the rest of the team… and by the way, where was Lance? And what about Ash and the others? For a moment, Gary shuddered at the idea that they had been buried under all that rubble, but he forced himself to stay calm and began looking aroundfor anything that might have helped him in the search.

Some coughing from his right caused him to turn that way, as Lance walked out of a cloud of dust, his cape held out in front of himself in order to filter the air! "Ah! It's you, Lance! Are you alright?" Gary asked.

The Kanto and Johto Champion dusted his cape off and nodded. "Yes… luckily, I'm uninjured, and it seems you are as well." The dragon tamer stated. "By the way, where are Ash and the others? I hope they aren't…"

"I have no idea whether they're alive or not…" Gary admitted with restrained, yet still clear, worry on his face. "And by the way, where have all those letter-shaped Pokemon gone to? They were Unowns, if I recall correctly…"

"I'm not sure where they are…" Lance shrugged. "At least, the fact that they've disappeared means we can rescue our friends without worry of being attacked. But I'm willing to bet there is an important link between those Unowns and Deoxys."

"A Deoxys? You mean, there actually was such a Pokemon here, on Quest Island?" Lorelei's well-known voice asked as soon as the Elite Four of Ice entered from a side corridor, Homura right behindher. "I didn't think Team Rocket was after such a rarity…"

"Lorelei, Homura! Luckily, you're okay…" Lance affirmed. "We're in quite a difficult position. Team Rocket has escaped, and we are sure they've gotten the gem they were after. And the Deoxys they were after got free, but has been captured not long afterwards by a strange flying machine… which later droppe some explosives on the island, with the results you can plainly see."

"Yeah… we saw that strange machine getting closer, and then this happened…" Homura answered. "At least those annoying Unowns seem to have gone away… but what about Ash and the others?"

"We're afraid they're still nside…" Gary answered. "Our Pokemon might be able to dig a way in, but it could be pretty dangerous."

"I guess so… if we aren't careful, we might end up causing a new and more dangerous cave-in." Lorelei answered, adjusting her glasses as she tried to think of a solution. "First off, the first thing to do is look for another way in. Since Team Rocket has estabilished an hideout here, they have obviously thought of alternative ways in and out, just in case anything happened."

Approving his colleague's thinking, Lance nodded his head. "Alright… then, let's take a look around, and see if we can find anything. Keep your eyes peeled, every second might be essential!"

**oooooooooo**

On the other side of the mountain, the escaped prisoners had all hit the ground or hidden behind some kind of improvised protection, in an attempt to shield themselves from the devastating explosion that had laid waste to that art of Quest Island! Jessie, James, Meowth, Ursula and Miyu were lying on the ground as well, stunned by the deafening noise and the blinding light… and as soon as things calmed down a little, everyone tentatively stood up, in an attempt to understand what was going on…

"Uuuugh… boy, now this was an ugly experience… I think I saw my whole life flash before my eyes!" Jessie exclaimed, angrily looking at her soot-covered scarlet hair. "What the heck did that woman do, anyway? What was the big idea of… er… bombing… this… place… what… on Earth…"

As she spoke, Jessie saw what had actually happened… and above all, she realized how serious the implications were! A whole section of the mountain had collapsed, leaving a smoking crater behind… and as Ursula, James, Meowth and Miyu picked themselves up as well, they looked in horror at what J had done, well knowing that other peoople might have remained under all that rubble…

"I... can't believe it!" Ursula murmured, failing to keep up her usual air of superiority. The realization that there still were people buried in that place, and that they might be injured or worse, filled her with revulsion for what Team Vicious had done. "For... what kind of crazy reason... have they done something so terrible?"

"They were friends of yours, right? You wanted to have us fall right into a trap, didn't you, you bunch of scoundrels?" one of the escapees harshly called out Team Rocket. Jessie quickly turned to the one who had just spoken, seeing that he had been joined in his protest by several of the recently-freed prisoners. They did not trust Jessie, James and Meowth one bit, and the shocking happenings that had just taken place did not help. However, the goofy criminal trio was not about to just lay down and accept the accusation... especially since they had done something good for once!

"Hey! Hey, hold on a second here! let us talk about it!" the alarmed James exclaimed. "Why... would we want to deceive you? We'd have nothing to gain from it, and besides... haven't you seen the way they just dropped a bomb on us? That woman didn't care if we were caught in the blast ourselves!"

"He's right." Miyu stated, placing herself between the angry mob and Team Rocket. "And this is not what we should be thinking about at the moment, anyway! There are people buried underneath that... and they might need our help! If you really want to be ingrates to those three, do it after our friends have been confirmed safe!"

Several former hostages weren't very glad to just drop the matter and be done with it, and only after a few unnerving moments did they agree to let the issue fall to the side and concentrate on the more urgent matter... which, by the way, had another complication going for it: the tunnel from which they had escaped had not crumbled during those dreadful moments, and if they wanted to get back inside to save Ash and his friends, they'd have to do it fast and get the rubble out of the way...

And that was when Ursula finally shook herself out of the trance she had fallen in, overcoming her fear and horror and starting to search among her Pokeballs for a Pokemon that might have helped her in that situation! "Alright, then! If I have to be the one helping Dee-Dee out this time, so be it... Geez, leave it to that ditz to put herself in such a pinch... Come out, Gabite! We need your help!"

"Fly, Yanmega!" Jessie exclaimed, letting the majestic Ogre Garner Pokemon out of her Pokeball and making her appear close to Ursula's Gabite with a loud buzzing of wings. Miyu and James let Houndoom and Carnivine out... and soon enough, all four Pokemon, with Gabite in the lead, ran to the mound of fallen rocks and began using their attacks to clear the way! Gabite attacked first with his Dragon Rush attack, smashing some rocks... Carnivine extended his Vine Whips to remove more of the obstruction, Yanmega used her Bug Buzz attack to generate a number of soundwaves that smashed more rocks... and Miyu's Houndoom was melting the obstacles in the way with his Flamethrower attack, slowly but surely clearing the way...

"It's working! Keep it up, everybody!" Miyu cheered on...

**oooooooooo**

Taking extreme care not to move anything, Brock sidestepped a mound of stones that had crushed a few chairs and a table - which were thankfully empty - and avoided a lamp that had fallen from the ceiling. Still no signs of either Dawn or anyone else of the team, and he was beginning to fear that something bad had really happened to them... but just then, close to a particularly large rock that had fallen close to a chasm, he managed to see a light going on and off rythmically, as if someone was trying to use Morse code to communicate with him. The Rock-type expert didn't know much about that particular code... but he immediately understood that it was a Pokemon calling for help, and judging from the rather unorthodox way of calling for attention... well, Brock did know a Pokemon that might have used that extravagant way to signal his presence...

"That must be... Dawn's Pachirisu!" he murmured to himself, quickly walking over to the edge of the cliff in order to reach him. "Pachirisu! Pachirisu, hold on, I'm coming! Where's Dawn, is she alright?"

The electric squirrel smiled in relief when the dark-skinned boy came closer, and pointed to the bottom of the cliff, at least ten metres down. Having a bad feeling about it, Brock picked Pachirisu up and looked down, taking advantage of the light given to him by Pachirisu's Flash attack. His heart skipped a beat as he saw Dawn lying face down on the floor, with her Piplup standing close and calling out to her! He was at least a little relieved when he saw that the blue-haired pre-teen was moving, and was talking to Piplup in order to reassure him... however, it was clear that she was injured and couldn't stand up.

"Pachirisu, listen... can you point me to a way for me to reach Dawn, and then get back here and go warn the others?" Brock asked the Electric-type, who nodded and pointed to a small, rather run-down path going down the border of the cliff. Exercising maximum care, the young man began following the narrow road, with Pachirisu acting like an improvised lantern... and after a few minutes, they managed to get to the bottom of the cliff, causing Dawn to lift her head in their direction and smile weakly.

"T-thanks, Pachirisu! Brock... it's good that you're okay!" the injured pre-teen murmured, wincing in pain.

Brock walked up to his young friend and crouched down beside her to check on her conditions... and as he did so, he managed to see that a few tears of pain were still streaming from her eyes. "Dawn... what happened here? How are you feeling?"

"_Piplup! Pip!_" Piplup chirped, pointing at his trainer's battered legs.

"W-well... I suppose... I've been better..." Dawn stammered, as Brock gave a worried look at her legs, immediately understanding what the problem was. "I... jumped from up there... to avoid getting flattened by a landslide... but I'm afraid I landed badly..."

"That seems to be the case, Dawn... Both your legs are broken, there's really no way around it." Brock said seriously. "We won't be able to move you around in these conditions, we need to think of a way to let the rescuers get down here instead. Of course, that's assuming we can get them to enter this place, as the landslides have blocked off several entrances."

Brock took his water canteen and let Dawn get a few sips from it, which calmed her down and made her feel a little better already. "Phew... thank you, Brock... if only there was... ugh... a viable path or something like that... the rescuers would have no trouble... getting here!" Dawn stated... and Brock, after thinking about it for a short while, smiled and snapped his fingers, having had a good idea!

"Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?" he exclaimed. "If there is no road to get down here, nothing forbids we create one ourselves! Steelix, Crobat! Come here, we need your help!"

Brock whipped out two Pokeballs and let out both the gigantic steel serpent and the huge bat... but right then, a third Pokemon came out on his own accord and materialized in front of the surprised Brock and Dawn, leaving both of them quite perplexed: Rhyhorn, the latest Pokemon the young man had caught, grunted in determination, despite being somewhat tired from his earlier battle, and scraped one of his paws on the ground, as if he was getting ready to charge at the rocky cliff.

"What? Huh... Rhyhorn, I hadn't called you out..." Brock stated hesitatingly, feeling like the problem of Pokemon getting out of their Pokeballs on their own had transferred from Misty to himself...

"_Rhyhorn! Rhy, rhyhorn!_" the rock-skinned rhino grunted, small clouds of steam coming out of his nostrils. He was still rather tired from his battle with Team Rocket, and he felt rather humiliated because he hadn't been fighting to the best of his abilities. Brock figured he wanted to make up for it somehow… however, the dark-skinned boy didn't seem to make a huge deal out of it, and gently caressed his new companion's scarred horn.

"I know what you mean, Rhyhorn, but it's not necessary for you to push yourself so much…" he stated. "Let your more rested companions take care of this, okay? Don't worry, you can get back to your Pokeball…"

Rhyhorn sighed in resignation, though it was plain that he wasn't sold on what Brock was telling him… and soon after, the young man recalled him in his Pokeball and turned to Steelix and Crobat, talkig to the giant bat first. "Okay, Crobat… use Supersonic and try to find out where it is safest to dig through!" he affirmed. "Can you do this? Take care that the ground must not be too hard or too soft, or we'll take a big risk…"

Crobat moved his four wings and shrieked in assent, as if saying that of course he could do that! The Poison / Flying Pokemon flew to the tall cliff from which Dawn had fallen and let out a piercing scream, directing it towards the stone in order to find the ideal point where to start digging. After a while, Crobat stopped his Supersonic attack and pointed to the place he had found… to which Steelix answered by quickly throwing himself at the cliff and using a Dig attack to open a hole in the bedrock, at the same time taking extreme care not to cause a cave-in! Carefully, Steelix moved so that his body would leave a usable tunnel behind, going up ever so slightly in order to create a slope in his work. A rumbling noise filled thecave, as the steel serpent made his way through the stone… and finally, he managed to emerge, shattering the floor on the upper level and letting out a victorious roar: he had left a perfectly cylindric tunnel behind him, large enough to allow a human to get through and go for the upper to the lower level, and vice versa, without any undue risk!

"Great idea, Brock!" Dawn exclaimed, almost forgetting about her own injuries as he raised a fist in front of her. "You were always the reliable one in our team!"

"_Crobat, crobat!_" Crobat shrieked in assent, clapping his wings together. Brock smiled and gave a thumbs-up to his friends, before letting yet another Pokemon out!

"Okay… Happiny, we need you now! Plase come out!" he stated. The pre-evolved form of Chansey soon appeared before the young man, a hand raised enthusiastically as if she was eager to help!

"_Happy!_"

"Good to see you're ready, Happiny…" Brock said with a small nod. "Please, can you help Piplup watch over Dawn? Make sure she doesn't get stressed and that she's well enough for when the rescuers arrive. Dawn, don't worry, I'll make sure to get help as soon as possible! Piplup, Pachirisu… you stay with Dawn as well! I don't think I need to tell you what to do, right?"

"_Piplup!_" the small penguin answered, while Pachirisu nodded.

Dawn, for her part, took a pair of deep breaths to ease the pain in her legs somewhat, and spoke. "Thanks, Brock… I'm sorry… to cause this much trouble for you guys…"

"Don't worry about it, Dawn! I'll be back with help as soon as I can!" Brock reassured her before he and Crobat climbed up the tunnel Steelix had created with his Dig attack, and soon emerged on the upper level, running back to where they had started…

**oooooooooo**

Ash, Pikachu, Infernape and Misty were still sitting where Brock had left them, waiting for him or someone else of their group to show up, and they were having an hard time hiding their anxiety… thy couldn't do much excepts sit there, and hope that none of their friends had gotten hurt, and it was all the more difficult for Ash, reckless and impatient as he was…

"Darn, how much longer until they show up again?" the boy asked, his broken arm failing to dampen his spirit. He was still in pain, but he could handle it. "I hope nothing happened to them… I hate to be stuck here while they're probably risking their lives in this maze!"

"I know, Ash… same goes for me! But we have to keep our heads cool, and hope for the best!" Misty said in an attempt to reassure him. "More to the point, we'll have to think of how we can get out of here after we've found our friends… I'm afraid the landslide has blocked off many of the possible exits…"

"We can still find more ways out…" Ash answered as he smiled gently to his old friend. "And our Pokemon can always find some other way with which to… Huh? Now what…?"

Infernape stood up and pointed to a pile of rocks who were shaking in quite an unsettling way… and Ash and Misty stod up as well, fearing this was a prelude to another landslide! They tried to get away and reach a way out… but they quickly stopped when they saw some white steam coming out of the place where the rocks were moving!

"_Pikachu?_" Pikachu asked, recognizing an Ice-type atack at work. A second later, the rocks shattered from the extreme cold, leaving behind an opening large enough for a human to fit through! A thickly-armored Kingler scuttled carefully through the opening, followed right behind by a few familiar people…

"Heh… will you look at that! You were here, close to where we had gotten separated, and we hadn't even noticed!" Gary commented ironically. Ash could not remember ever having been happier at hearing thevoice of his oldest rival, as he and other trainers walked through the hole Kingler had blown in the wall. Homura, Lance and Lorelei were right behind him…

"Gary! Lance!" Ash exclaimed in pleased surprise.

"Miss Lorelei, Homura! I'm so glad you managed to find us!" Misty said, feeling a lot more relieved now that she knew they were alive and well. There was still someone missing, though…

"Well, that was obvious! You surely didn't think we would have just been sitting on our butts without doing anything, did you?" Gary answered. His smile faded when he saw that Ash was cradling his clearly-injured left arm. "Hey, Ashy-boy, you alright? Your arm seems…"

"Yeah…" Ash answered, gritting his teeth. "A rock fell right on my arm… And we still don't know where Brock, Dawn, Team Rocket, Miyu and Ursula are…"

"Well if you're looking for me, here I am!" Brock answered, walking out of the gallery he had gotten away through, with Steelix and Crobat right behind. "And I'm glad to see a few more people here… but how did you manage to find us?"

"We can chalk it up to our Pokemon's skills and a pinch of luck." Lance affirmed, dusting his cape. "But Dawn is still missing… do you happen to know where she is?"

Brock coughed in order to clear the dust in his throat. "I found her a few minutes ago… sadly, she was injured in the bombing. Not severely, but she still can't move. We have to make sure the rescue teams get to her, and it won't be that easy." He affirmed, causing the others – especially Ash and Misty – to get quite alarmed at the news. "What we need to do now, is find a way out of this place, somehow…"

"Of course…" Homura answered. "Then, what are we waiting for? We find the nearest exit and we try to dig our way out… hm? What's he doing now?"

Brock's Crobat had started to look around himself as soon as the Rock-type expert had rejoined Ash and Misty… and now, he was noisily flapping around the trainers to warn them of something he had heard. It seemed like the giant bat wanted to tell something very important to them… probably, that their friends had gone in another direction and were trying to dig their way out, or dig them out of there!

"What's up, Crobat? Did you hear something?" Brock asked.

"_Pika pi, pikachu pi... pika pika chuuu!_" Pikachu exclaimed, having heard something himself. It sounded like the sound of rocks scraping against each other, or were getting hit with something heavy… Yes, there was no doubt about this, someone was trying to demolish the rocks obstructing the exit from that hideous place!

"I think… Pikachu is telling us that the rest of the team is that way!" a more hopeful Ash commented. "C'mon, we have to go tha way! It's our best chance to get out of here and find some help for Dawn!"

"Of course." Lorelei stated. "But before we do, I need to call on someone… Come, Lapras! We need your aid!"

The glasses-wearing Elite Four let the graceful Water/Ice turtle Pokemon out of his Pokeball, and Lapras let out his melodic call as he took shape in front of Lorelei… who wasted no time patting the large Pokemon on his head and telling him what was going on. "Thanks, Lapras… listen, we're in a bit of a pinch here… can you help us out here?"

"_LAPRAAAAS!_" the turtle-like Pokemon sang as he nodded fiercely…

**oooooooooo**

A powerful gout of flame from Miyu's Houndoom struck the boulder blocking the entrance to the cavern… but sadly, even this proved to be insufficient as the massive rock stood in its place, only a few cracks appearing upon it, and the flame soon gave out as the breathless helldog panted for air.

"Houndoom…" Miyu said as she assisted her Pokemon. "Are you okay? Sorry, I'm afraid I kinda ran you through the wringer today…"

The Fire / Dark dobermann-like Pokemon shook his head no, as if saying his trainer didn't have to apologize. But things hadn't gotten much better yet… even the strongest of Jessie and James' Pokemon had not managed to do much against that massive rock…

"I'm afraid your Gabite's the only one who can do something, girlie." Meowth affirmed. "I don't think I'd be much help, except for leaving a claw mark on the stone. And my claws would crack too…"

"I don't need to have you tell me that, kitten… I can figure that out myself!" Ursula snapped, her frustraion and anxiety getting at her. "Sigh… alright, Gabite, I know I'm asking a lot of you, but… you're the only one who can blast that rock apart! So, please… pul out all the stops for this one!"

The landshark grunted an affirmative and went back to work, another Dragon Rush striking the boulder with fury! Several pieces of stone were chipped off, but it still was not enough… it would still take more to destroy that massive obstacle, and Gabite was not going to hold out forever…

But luck was on the rescue team's side – as soon as Gabite took a step backwards and prepared for yet another strike, a mighty blow struck the granite boulder from the inside, causing some of it to chip off yet again… and Team Rocket jumped up in surprise as the rock began to move a few millimeters from its position! Gabite looked at the slight fissures in the stone with wonder… and then grinned like a hungry shark as he realized that the other trainers that were still inside the cavern were still doing all they could to dig themselves out!

"_Gab! Gabite!_"

"It's them!" James exclaimed. "The twerps are still alive… and trying to get out!"

"Hehehee… I knew they would not die so easily!" Jessie answered. "Then, let's not waste any more time, and get this peeble out of the way!"

"Talk about a peeble…" Meowth sighed. The feline Pokemon sneaked a peek behind him, and was glad to see that some rescue teams were approaching from the closest town – a few Pokemon Rangers riding Pidgeots were accompanying a couple of helicopters whose rotors could already be heard in the distance… "Still, more good news! Looks like a rescue team is on the way!"

"About time too! They sure took their sweet time noticing all that ruckus!" Ursula commented, as she silently cheered for her Gabite to bring the last obstruction down…

**oooooooooo**

The moment was tense and filled with expectation, both inside and outside the cavern. Lorelei's Lapras had used several Ice Beams to weaken the massive rock standing in their way, while Brock's Pokemon, especially Croagunk and Graveler, hit the iced parts of the rock with all the strength they could muster, and even Gible was using his immense physical power to try and break the weakened parts of the boulder. Lance, who was standing on the sidelines but was ready to intervene should the need have arisen, couldn't help but be impressed at how the small Dragon / Ground type was able to deal such mightly blows…

But even so, work was going slowly, and the Pokemon were seriously rsking to get fatigues. Brock's Graveler was still not really used to his new form, after having been a Geodude for so long, and there wasn't a great deal of space to work with anyway… which left Croagunk and Graveler with few options other than alternatively striking at the rock, slowly chipping away at it.

"Darn, it's taking longer than I'd like…" Brock affirmed. "There has to be another way to break through… or maybe we should try to get out of another side. If this keeps up, we'll only waste our Pokemon's strength…"

"My Lapras is still going strong… but I guess it's not quite the same for the others." Lorelei commented, seeing that Graveler was getting winded after the latest Rollout attack. "Maybe you're right, we should look somewhere else…"

The Ice-type expert stopped herself as a white beamof light came out of one of Brock's Pokeballs… and just like before, the young man's Rhyhorn appeared with a warlike roar, causing the suprised Graveler and Croagunk to hang back… just in time before the fierce rhinoceros charged at the boulder and struck it with his most powerful Horn Attack! However, the damage was negligible, while Rhyhorn remained stunne for a few seconds…

"Rhyhorn!" Brock exclaimed, checking on his latest Pokemon. "Rhyhorn, what are you doing? I just told you, you don't have to exhaust yourself… you've already done more than enough for us, and you don't want to hurt yourself by pushing yourself too hard!"

"_Horrrrrn…_" Rhyhorn grunted, as he sadly shook his head. Sure, Rhyhorns were known for being stubborn… but in Brock's opinion, this went beyond even what was normal for the species.. Brock sighed and tried to calm his Pokemon down… but before he could do so, Rhyhorn talked again, as he tried to explain the reason why he was pushing himself so hard. "_Rhy, rhyhorn! Hooornnn, rhy rhy... rhyhorn!_"

"What?" Brock asked, furrowing his brow as everyone around seemed to be asking themselves just what was going on. "Yes… I see what you mean, Rhyhorn, but… you don't have to repay me, or anything like that. When you were injured, on Knot Island… I helped you because I wanted to help you, not because I wanted you to be in my debt…"

"I don't think that's the problem, Brock…" Homura said, rubbing at his chin. "I think… Rhyhorn has another reason for wanting to help. Listen to him…"

"_Rhyhorn... rhy rhy horn!_" the rhinoceros grunted, nodding his head… and after a few moments, Brock nodded, a pensive expression on his face that showed he had not thought of that possibility…

"I understand, Rhyhorn… this is something you want to show to yourself as well, right?" the young man asked… and after his Pokemon grunted an affirmative, and he stood in his place pondering the answer, Brock smiled at Rhyhorn and nodded as well. "Okay, but try not to overwork yourself! If you believe in yourself, I will believe in you as well! Go… and good luck!"

The Ground / Rock type smirked, his tough, angular face relaxing a little… and attacked the boulder again! And again, and again… each attack sending a reverberating blow through the cavern, but failing to affect the large rock in a significant way! As he tried to get away and then try again, Rhyhorn suddenly stopped and serenely closed his eyes, as he began glowing in a gentle white radiance…

The Pokemon stood up on his hind legs, taking on a bipedal shape as the light completely swallowed him, illuminating the dark cave and forcing both Pokemon and trainers to shield their eyes! A few seconds passed as the light embraced everything… and then it faded, revealing that Rhyhoon had evolved into a mighty Rhydon, a bulky Ground / Rock type with a grey, rock-hard skin, looking like some sort of cross between a rhinoceros and a dinosaur. A large drill-like horn jutted out of his face, where the nose should have been, and several rocky spines could be seen running down his spine. His front legs had become arms, ending in five-fingered hands with small claws, and even his eyes were different, a telltale glimmer of intelligence shining inside of them.

"_RHYDOOOOON!_" the new Pokemon roared, the walls trembling at the sound of his mighty voice. Then, as Gible, Graveler, Croagunk and Lapras watched in awe, Rhydon raised an arm and motioned for them to make way. As soon as the way was clear, the terrifying Ground / Rock type took aim, and the horn of the tip of his muzzle began spinning like a drill, creating a terrifying sound of stone scraping against stone! Rhydon lowered his head… and charged, his drill screeching on the solid granite!

"Awesome! This is a Drill Horn attack!" Brock exclaimed, a fist clenched in front of himself. "Keep it up, Rhydon! You can do it!"

**oooooooooo**

Ursula's Gabite roared again, unleashing yet another attack on the huge boulder and denting it onc again… but he was not able to make much progress still. Sighing in frustration, the landshark knelt down and tried to draw some breath before returning to attack. He was a little surprised when he felt his trainer's hands gently placing themselves on his shoulders, and turned around to see Ursula trying to encourage him, firmly yet kindly!

"Gabite… don't give up, I know you can do this!" the rich heiress told him. "In every competition we've taken part in along with our companions, you've always done your best not to disappoint me, and I'm grateful for that! Even when that blue-haired ditz defeated us, I was proud of you… I knew you were always doing your best! It's the same thing now… only, now we have people to save! Get angry, Gabite! Show what you're made of, and remember… that I'm always on your side! Smash that peeble to dust!"

Gabite smiled and picked himself up, walking to the boulder. He could hear the voices of people gathering atound, the noise of the rescue vehicles coming through… but at that moment, his mind was only on the obstacle in front of himself. His trainer had faith in him… and he had no plans to let her down just now!

A red flare lit up in the landshark's eyes, and Ursula herself jumped up in fright when Gabite let out a thunderous roar as it prepared a new attack! The girl stepped backwards as Jessie and James hugged each other with a terrified wail… butas she realized what Gabite was going to do, a victorious smile graced her face!

"Sure! That's it! This.. this is an Outrage attack! We've got this in the bag now!"

**oooooooooo**

Rhydon stepped backwards and aimed another Drill Horn at the boulder… but before he could do that, someone else decided he had to help out as well! Brock's Gible stepped forth and opened his wide jaws, pointing them at the damaged boulder standing in the way… At first surprised, Brock smiled with pride as an orange glow lit up in the small dragon's mouth, and a split second later, the same unknown energy attack that had left Ash and his friends baffled until then shot out at tremendous speed! Several shooting stars struck the boulder relentlessly, exploding upon it and caused a part of it t crumble, under Lance's disbelieving gaze! Brock had made a few references to that attack nobody knew anything about… but now that he was actually seeingit, things were a lot clearer! And above all, he knew that wasn't just a simple Gible…

"I can't believe it…" the dragon tamer murmured. "That attack could only be…"

Rhydon thanked the drake with a grunt and a gruff smile… then, he charged at what remained of the boulder, executing a flawless Drill Horn attack… just as outside, Ursula's Gabite unleashed his Outrage attack!

...

...

*CRAAAAAAAAASH!*

Struck from both sides, the massive rock could take no more and shattered, raising a tremendous cloud of dust all around as some fresh air finally filtered in the underground base! As soon as the dust cleared, the occupants of the cave could see who was outside… and they all cheered in joy as they saw Miyu, Ursula, Team Rocket and their Pokemon standing outside, and that the rescue teams were arriving on the scene as well! Ash could hardly believe it… the bad situation they had fallen in had been solved in the best of ways!

"We… we did it!" Ash exclaimed, taking a deep breath of fresh air. "Man, this time… this time it really looked bad, didn't it? How are you, everyone? You alright?"

"Heh… I knew you were too tough to go down ust like that!" Jessie exclaimed. "Of course we're okay, twerp! Rather, you seem to be a little beat up…"

"Yeah…" Misty said, looking at Ash's left arm, which he was still holding gingerly. "By the way, we'd better recall our Pokemon and let the rescue teams in, Dawn is still awaiting rescue!"

"Of course!" Brock answered… before caressing his Pokemon on the head, in pride and joy! "Congratulations, guys… you were fantastic, all of you!"

"Nicely done, Gabite!" Ursula said, hugging her Pokemon. "I knew you would do it… you're always the best!"

"_GABITE!_" Gabite roared proudly, accepting his trainer's show of gratitude.

**ooooooooo**

Luckily, things had been smooth sailing from then on. Thanks to Brock's Steelix and the passage he had created, the rescue teams had managed to reach the place where Dawn was lying. Thankfully, also thanks to Pipup, Pachirisu and Happiny who were tending to her, Dawn had managed not to faint as she waited for rescue… and all it took was for the medics to set her legs somewhat and load her on a stretcher, before getting out of the cave… where Dawn was immediately surrounded by her friends trying to ascertain if she was alright!

"Hey, guys…" Dawn murmred, Piplup and Pachirisu in her arms, managing a smile despite the pain. "That's… good… looks like we're all here!"

"_Piplup!_" the blue penguin chirped, glad to be able to once again the fresh air.

"Yeah… we've done it somehow!" Ash answered, as a medic tried to get him to have his arm tended to.

Misty got close to the stretcher Dawn was lying on, and placed a hand on her friend's forehead. "Now, don't try too hard and just think of resting! You'll be up and about before you know it!"

"Hey, Dee-Dee… no playing jokes on us just now that we've gotten you out of that place!" Ursula exclaimed, pointing an index finger at Dawn. "You still owe me a rematch, remember that!"

Dawn giggled goofily, staring at her rival with determination. "I couldn't forget it… if I tried!" she answered, before she was carried onboard the helicopter, the other members of the team climbing in right after.

Now that Deoxys' unnatural aurora borealis was fading, the sky was getting darkened by menacing storm-clouds… but even so, that dangerous adventure had had an happy ending.

At least for now…

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**Author's note: Hehee… and there you go! Hope I haven't jerked you guys around too much! My intention was to create a thrilling and suspenceful chapter… and I think I've succeeded on that! Next chapter will simply be an aftermath for this one… before we move to new, more xciting events! See you soon, everyone, and I hope you enjoyed this!**


	38. Rest For The Weary

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Hello, everyone!**

**If I recall correctly, the latest chapter was definitely quite hectic, after Ash and his friends managed to survive Hunter J's callous bombing of Quest Island. Ash and Dawn were left injured, and both criminal teams managed to get away with something they wanted, so... heck, I'm afraid this means that the bad guys have scored a few points! But the game is still in the beginning, and things might get turned around anytime, so... the Iron Masked Marauder and Giovanni had better not get too complacent!**

**Other than that, well, not much is going to hapen this chapter, aside from some much needed rest for our main characters, and a potentially life-changing choice for both Ursula and Team Rocket! Yeah, I realize that I'm gong on completely different rails than the anime here, but... heck, sometimes you need to shake up the status quo, right? I just hope my ideas for these characters are well-accepted...**

**But I'll leave you be the judges of that! So... welcome to my new POkemon Heart Soul Adventures chapter! Enjoy, and happy reading!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 38 - Rest For The Weary**

The first thing Ash Ketchum heard, after losing track of time and drifting off to sleep, was the soft sound of rain beating on the windows, along with the howling wind on Quest Island's reefs. The young boy slowly opened his eyes... and before him, just like he expected, appeared Pikachu's smiling face, who greeted him with a whispered squeak.

"_Pika, pika pi!_" Pikachu exclaimed, his lightning-shaped tail held high proudly behind him. Even though he was still stunned, Ash smiled and tried to disentangle himself for the blankets that wrapped him tightly.

"Hmm... hello, Pikachu! How long has it been since... ow!" he whispered, grimacing at the end when he felt a stinging pain piercing his left arm, which forced him to lie down again. And that was when he completely woke up and remembered what had happened... the cavern they were in had collapsed, no thanks to the bombs Team Vicious had dropped upon Quest Island, and in all the ensuing confusion, he had managed to break his left arm. His recalling was immediately confirmed when Ash took a look at himself, and saw the limb immobilized in a long white cast going from just below his shoulder to his knuckles, only leaving the fingers free, with his elbow kept bent at a right angle. Ash winced and sighed, shrugging off the dull pain that still lingered in his injured arm.

"_Pika pi?_" Pikachu asked, going to assist his human friend.

"Owww... man, I remember what happened alright..." Ash said, getting his breath. "Deoxys managed to get away after the battle was over... and that woman, J, managed to get a hold of him! And then she dropped her bombs on us, and we were stuck underneath when everything went down! And then onefe falling rocks had dropped down upon me... man, I'm still seeing stars from that! I guess we're in hospital right now, aren't we, Pikachu?"

"_Pikachu..._" the yellow mouse answered, shifting a little as Ash took a good look around. Right at that moment, the young aspirant Pokemon Master was lying on a comfortable, clean bed, in a tidy and aseptical-looking room, with a single window on the wall to his left, now closed and sealed. However, this was not what Ash had immediately noticed... but rather the fact that an old acquaintance of his was sitting on a wooden chair right next to his bed, sleeping like a baby, with her pretty red hair messed up and stll damp.

"Ah... sure, I see... and what about Misty? She's... been sitting here all along?" Ash asked, once again addressing his starter Pokemon, who answered with a knowing nod and a wink.

"_Pikachu pi pika pikachu pika, pika pi!_" Pikachu answered... and after sitting up in his bed, making sur not to further agitate his casted arm, rubbed the back of his head with his healthy one.

"Heheheee... so, Misty has been sitting here just in case there were problems with me?" he asked in embarassment. "Well, with all the strong emotions we've had today,it doesn't surpriseme that she's fallen asleep! Today, it really was a close shave... oh, and by the way! Do you happen to know how Dawn is, Pikachu? I did hear she got hurt pretty badly..."

"_Pika ka pikachu pika pika chu... pika, pikachu!_" the electric mouse answered, motioning for his trainer not to worry about her, which caused Ash to sigh in relief.

"Well, I'm glad it was nothin really serious, in the end..." Ash stated, keeping his voice low. At his bedside, Misty was so deep asleep that she had heard nothing, and when Ash turned to her, he stood there for some time to notice... that the fiery-tempered Water-type trainer really looked like someone else when she was asleep! Had he not known what she was like, he'd never have pegged her for such a dynamic,quick-tempered girl. Her sweetness and kindness simply seeped through her demeanor right now...

Ash stood there to look at Msty for a few more seconds, with only the quiet, soothing noise of the rain to act as background... then, the boy smiled cunningly and, still taking care not to wake Misty up, sat up on his bed and inched closer to he redhead. "Hehehee... now she's just begging for a surprise awakening!" he murmured to himself, wiggling the fingers on his healthy hand, as if getting ready to tickle her!

"_Pika pi?_" Pikachu asked, frowning a little.

"Heheheee... don't worry, Pikachu, it's just a little harmless fun!" Ash answered, taking pains not to move his casted arm as he slowly got closer and closer to the sleeping Misty. He began tickling her on one side of her neck, barely touching her smooth skin with his index finger... and the sensitive girl woke up with a start and a surprised squeal!

"KYAH! Wha... what the..." the redhead exclaimed as she tried to keep her balance. She looked around herself, only to find herself face to face with a chortling Ash and a shrugging Pikachu, who seemed to be saying that he had tried, unsuccessfully, to stop him. "Ugh... Ash, what was the big idea, you doofus?"

"Hehehee... you should see your face right now, Misty! It's just priceless! Hahahahaa!" The black-haired teen answered cheekily, laughing as if nothing was wrong! Misty was of a whole different opinion and, after frowning a little, she took a mallet out of seemingly nowhere and smacked Ash upside the head with it, causing him to see stars once again! "Owww... sorry, Misty, it's just that I saw you sitting there, on a trip to the land of Nod... and I couldn't resist teasing you! You really have no stamina when it comes to tickling, you know that?"

"Ugh... just be thankful you're injured, or else I'd have some fun determining how much tickling stamina you've got!" Misty answered annoyedly. However, since she knew Ash had only done that to joke around a little, she immediately relented, walking close to Ash and hugging him even as she tried not to touch his broken arm. "Still, I'm glad you're alright, Ash! I was afraid, I'll admit it..." she continued, hoping that Ash would not see her blush...

"No worries, Misty... it's just a broken arm, after all! Nothing really serious!" Ash answered, hugging Misty back with his still usable arm before turning to Pikachu and winking to him. "And it's not even my strong arm to boot! I can still use the other one to throw my Pokeballs, so it's no problem!"

"_Pikachu..._" Pikachu answered snarkily, a sweatdrop pouring down his head.

Misty giggled sarcastically. "Yeah, I'm sure... knowing you, if you had broken both your arms, you'd learn to kick Pokeballs open!"

(In another Pokemon universe, a Dex-holder with blue hair done in pigtails sneezed right then, feeling like somebody was talking about her...)

Ash laughed again, then cleared his throat, getting more serious. "Well, anyway... how's Dawn? It's nothing really serious, is it?" he asked, still a little worried for the young coordinator's conditions.

"Well, it's nothing fun, that's for sure..." Misty answered with a small sigh. "She broke both her legs in the fall, and she'll have to stay off her feet for quite a while. Still it's nothing really dangerous, and the breaks were not as serious as they seemed at first."

Ash nodded, glad to know that. "Well, that's good... at least, we managed to come out of this in one piece, more or less!" he mused.

"Yeah... and no one else got hurt, luckily!" Misty said, looking at the sealed window with some embarassment. The drops of rain beating on the glass were very well visible, and from time to time, thunder rumbled in the distance... it seemed the weather troubles caused by Deoxys' rise had not yet ended, but Ash, Pikachu and Misty had to admit that, instead of being unsettling or saddening, the overall effect was comfortable, as if saying that a part of their journey had ended, and the travellers could finally get some rest.

Misty scratched the leg of her chair, trying to think of something she could say to break the silence. Darn, why was it that, now that she had the chance to spend some time with the boy she had a crush on, she just couldn't find the right words to start up a conversation? And to think, she had a lot of things to say... it was like seeing death straight in the face had made her forget all about them! The redhaired girl rubbed her forehead in frustration...

"_Pikachu pi?_" Pikachu asked, moving hs pointed ears.

Just as the situation seemed to have reached a stalemate, Ash finally stood up from his bed and stretched his back a little. "By the way, Misty... what time is it now? Are the others still awake?" he asked. "I kinda lost track of time, in all this..."

"Huh? Oh, right..." Misty answered, as she helped Ash hang his casted arm in a sling around his neck, and took a lok at her watch. "It's exactly four o'clock in the morning right now... And Brock and the others couldn't sleep much anyway... as you can guess, they were pretty worried themselves. And that includes Ursula..."

Ash laughed a little at this. "Heheheee... even Ursula, really? Then Brock was right, that girl isn't that bad after all!" he said, before turning his eyes to his room's door when it opened with a barely audible clack. Pikachu moved his ears and smiled slightly as he saw that it was Brock, who was now paying a visit to his lifelong friend in order to ascertain that he was doing okay.

"Ash? Misty?" Brock called out to them as soon as he was sure that both of them were awake. "Sorry, guys, can I come in? I hope I'm not bothering you..."

"Ah, Brock, glad to see you!" Ash answerd, feeling somewhat embarassed for some reason. Maybe because he was there with Misty, in a situation that could easily be mistaken for more than a friendly interaction? And to think he had never really thought of such things before... something was changing within him, there was no denying it. "How... er... how are you doing? Are the others alright?"

"Luckily, that's the case! Aside from your broken arm and Dawn's broken legs, there are no injuries." Brock answered, stepping into the room and revealing a small white patch plastered just above his right eye. "I got a small cut on my forehead, but it's nothing, really... it just needed to be disinfected a little. The others are okay, and are waiting for news from you!"

"Alright..." Ash said, finally getting up from his bed and putting on a pair of slippers. "By the way, Brock, can we also go pay a visit to Dawn, while we're at it? Considering her conditions, I think she'll appreciate the thought, right?"

"You're right about that..." Brock answered. "But are you sure you can stand up? You took quite a nasty hit yourself."

Ash chuckled gently at the question. "Hehehee... don't worry about that, Brock, it will take more than a mere broken arm to keep down the future Pokemon Master!" he answered, holding Pikachu in his healthy arm. "Don't worry, I'm feeling okay!"

"And I'd like to go see how Dawn is doing as well. If it's possible, of course." Misty went on, concerned about her friend from Sinnoh. Brock smiled slightly and nodded, motioning for his friends to follow him in the hospital's corridor.

"It's okay, no problem about it... the medics have finished treating Dawn about a couple hours ago, and now she's in her room... she woke up earlier, and she asked about you first thing!" Brock explained. "So, if you guys want..."

"_Pika!_" Pikachu squeaked, assenting for Ash and Misty as well. Silently, in order not to disturb the other patients, the three of them stepped out of Ash's room and began walking along the corridor, following the dark-skinned young man's directions. Less than one minute later, they were right in front of Dawn's room, where Gary and Ursula were already waiting for them, sitting on a couple chairs just outside the room.

"Here I am, Gary! Hi, Ursula! Never thought you'd be here as well!" Ash said, drawing a rather annoyed expression from the spiral-haired pre-teen.

"Heh, here's good ol' Ash!" Gary answered. "So, how are you doing? I can see that arm isn't doing much to slow you down!"

"Hmph. And why shouldn't I be here, pray tell?" Ursula asked rhetorically, wrinkling her nose.

"Nothing, really... never mind what I said!" Ash answered. "Anyway... hehehee, as I always say, Gary, it takes more than just that to keep me down! On the other hand, we've come to see Dawn... did the doctors tell you anything about her?"

Ursula looked down and shrugged, trying to look indifferent. "Not much, they just said she wasn't as badly hurt as they thought, but that she'll have to stay put for quite a while..." she answered, before turning to a Nurse Joy who was walking up to Dawn's room just then.

"Good morning, Nurse Joy..." Ash greeted her first, waving at her with his free hand. "Excuse us, we've come to see our friend... we can visit her for a while, right?"

"Oh, Ash! Glad to see you're up already!" the rose-haired nurse greeted back. "Anyway... yes, I had just come to see the patient... and you can come with me as well, if you want!"

As Misty nodded in thanks, Joy walked up to Dawn's room and rapped lightly on the door. One second later, Dawn's cheerful voice, though still laced with sleep, answered from inside the room. "Yes... please, come in!"

Joy opened the door and finally stepped in, with Ash, Pikachu and their friends close behind. "Hi, Dawn! Sorry if I'm bothering you, but I needed to control a few things... and your friends wanted to see you as well, so I decided I might as well let them in!"

"Oh, it's okay! Hello, guys! Pleased to see you're okay!" Dawn smiled as she stood up a little from the bed she was confined to. Her hair was loose, she was wearing a pink nightie, and both her legs, lying upon several cushions, were encased in white plaster casts, from her upper thighs to the balls of her feet. A transparent IV was dripping into her left arm, injecting what was probably painkiller in her veins. "I just hope... I haven't made you worry too much..." she went on, trying to find a comfortable position.

"_Piplup! Piplup!_" Piplup, sitting in his trainer's lap, greeted the team by waving his short wings.

"It's okay, Dawn! Never mind that!" Ash said with a reassuring smile. "Still, what about you? Do your legs hurt a lot?

Dawn wiggled her bare toes, wincing as the gesture sent a brief jolt of pain up one of her fractured legs. "Ow... kind of... I'm still doing better than before!" she answered, before drawing a sigh. "Well... guess that means I'll be out of commission for a while, huh?"

"Maybe not for so long..." Nurse Joy said as she took a look at Dawn's charts. "Sure your legs aren't in a pristine shape... both ankles are fractured, as well as both femurs... but the bones haven't moved much from their position, and the breaks are not serious. You should be able to get around in a wheelchair in a few days... and you'll probably be out of casts in a couple months, tops."

"Glad to know that..." Dawn sighed in relief. Piplup wiped his forehead with his wing as well, relieved to know that his trainer was not in such a bad shape after all.

Ursula shrugged, motioning to the rest of the team, especially Gary and Brock. "You should be thankful to them, most of all." the drill-haired girl answered. "They did the bulk of the work for allowing the rescuers to get down where you had fallen to. Thogh my Gabite did his share as well..."

Dawn put a had in front of her mouh and giggled quietly, which did annoy her rival. "Huh? What's so funny now, Dee-Dee? I said something funny?

"Hehehee... no, it's nothing! Sorry, Ursula, I didn't mean to sound cheeky..." Dawn answered. "It's just that, well... despite what you might say, Ursula, you were worried about me as well! And... thanks for helping Ash and the others rescue me!"

"_Piplup!_" the blue penguin chirped as well, as a vein popped up on Ursula's forehead! The rich heiress crossed her arms on her chest and turned her head the other way, trying to look indignant!

"Hmph! Don't go getting strange ideas, Dee-Dee! I didn't help you because I thin you're my friend, or anything like that!" she exclaimed, wanting to make things clear once and for all. "It's just that, well, I like to think I'm not as heartless as to leave an injured person in a pinch like that!"

"Still, thank you, Ursula!" Dawn went on. "And thanks to you all, guys! I'd have been in real trouble if it hadn't been for you!"

"Oh, don't mention it, we just did what we had to do!" Gary answered, noddind to the injured pre-teen. "You just think of recovering for now, okay? Don't be in a haste to get back on your feet, and let the broken bones set themselves."

"Gotcha! No need to worry!" Dawn answered, stifling a yawn. "Hmm... sorry, guys, but I'm feeling a little groggy right now... I think I need to get some sleep..."

"Of course!" Misty answered. "Sleep well, Dawn... we'd probably need some shut-eye ourselves..."

"Sleep well, Dawn, and have a speedy recovery!" Brock answered, as one at the time, her fiends waved to he and left the room. Ash and Pikachu were the last ones to go, with the raven-haired teen flashing a thumbs-up sign with his free hand before closing the door. Finally, when everyone had gone out, Dawn sighed and lay down on her bed, trying to relax.

"Phew... well, that was unfortunate... but lamenting about it won't help, I just need to think of resting and getting my strength back. As soon as I get a wheelchair, I'll start training again! I won't let this incident slow me down!" she told herself, before turning to the window on her left. The room, in the wee hours of the night, was immersed in an almost ghostly silence, with only the rain beating outside to keep her company aside from her Piplup. The penguin-like Pokemon, in an attempt to confort his injured trainer, stroke her cheek with one of his short wings, and Dawn thanked him for the kind gesture by scraching his head with her index and middle fingers. "It's okay, Piplup... thanks for the thought, anyway! Don't worry, I'll be up and about earlier than you think, and we'll be back to our beloved contests!"

"_Piplup! Piplup pip, piplup!_" the penguin Pokemon exclaimed, tilting his head as he bid goodnight to his trainer. Dawn smiled and yawned again, sleep overtaking her.

"Good night, Piplup... yaaawn... see you tomorrow..." she murmured, before closing her eyes and drifting to a peaceful sleep...

**oooooooooo**

"Well, in the end, things went relatively well... relatively being the operative word here..." Lorelei stated as she sat at a table, along with Lance and the two aspiring Sevii Gym Leaders, discussing what had transpired. Miyu and Homura had been respectively joined by Miyu's Mightyena, Night Sky, and by Homura's Arcanine... and despite the fact that those two were trying to keep up everyone's spirts, it was clear that the situation was rather tense. They all knew the two criminal cartels were at an advantage right then... Deoxys was now in J and Team Vicious' clutches, while Team Rocket had gotten the Ruby and the Emerald, leaving only the Sapphire to the Pokemon League trainers. Plus, there were several obscure points, not the least of which was the surprise apparition of a whole host of Unowns when Deoxys had awakened...

Lance drummed his finger on the table. "Sadly, we can't say we're in a good place either. At least we manged to stop Team Rocket from taking all three gems... I do wonder what they're going to do with those." he said. "Lorelei, have you already ran tests on those gems?"

"Of course. And it seems our experts at the Kanto Pokemon League have a few results already." the young woman answered. "There seems to be a peculiar kind of energy dwelling inside the Sapphire. We still aren't sure what's that about, but it's tied to another continent's Legendary Pokemon. We have to further study this."

"That's something at least." Miyu saod as she scratched Night Sky behind an ear."Legendary Pokemon, huh? I'd love to know more of this, it's always been a fascinating topic for me..."

"Now that I think of it... Miyu, your grandfather is an archaeologist, right? And he has studied these things to some extent, if I recall correctly." Homura stated, remembering something Miyu had told him once. "Maybe, if he does know something about these gems, we'd have an easier time with this."

"I'll do my very best, but my grandfather isn't in Sevii Islands at the moment." the Dark-type expert answered. "He's now in the faraway continent of Oblivia to do some research and help the Rangers with a problem they're having. I have no idea when he'll be back..."

"I see... more's the pity, he could have been a great help with this problem." Homura mused. "Still, the fact that the Leaguehas gotten hold of one of the gems does give us a modicum of advantage on Team Rocket. Of course, the Sapphire must be brought to safety... those criminals will certainly do all in their power and beyond to steal it as well."

Lorelei immediately reassured the Fire-type user that this was not going to be the case. "Don't worry about that. I have personally arranged for the Sapphire to be stored in one of the most well-protected and secured rooms in the Kanto Pokemon League's HQ, and no Team Rocket member will attempt to steal it from there. Our security system is top-notch, and they aren't going to take us by surprise."

"It's okay, then. At least for now, this problem should be solved." Lance stated. "However, there is another one we should take care of, and that's Team Vicious. According to what Ash and his friends have told me, the one who's in command of the organization is a man only known as the Iron Masked Marauder, a former Team Rocket member Ash, Misty and Brock have already faced in the past. He had tried to get ahold of Celebi's power of time control in order to take over the world, but he was soundly defeated. However, he seems to have come back for revenge, and to get back all he had and more. And sadly, he can still count on his brainwashing technology to transform Pokemon in murderous machines at his beck and call."

"And that's not the worst of it. That Deoxys who was lying in sleep in Quest Island's depths has fallen in his hands as well." Miyu thought it was necessary to remind everyone of that. "Sure, Deoxys isn't quite as strong as a real Legendary, but it's surely much beyond the strength of a common Pokemon, which given Team Vicious a huge advantage."

Lorelei adjusted her glasses as she wrote something down on a notepad. "We will do our best to gather as much information as possible on this organization and its affiliates. Aside from the recent attacks on Knot Island and Quest Island, they haven't done anything really noteworthy, so we have very little information on them. Still, we're going to put some pressure on them as well."

Lance sighed and rubbed his forehead, satisfied and worried at the same time. They were fighting a war on two fronts, and there were going to be quite a few problems if things had kept developing like that...

**oooooooooo**

The next morning, as the sky was clearing, and after everyone had woken up and had a quick breakfast...

"You want me to do WHAT? Forget it, not a chance!"

"C'mon, Ursula, work with us here..." Misty replied, almost placing herself right in front of the haughty Sinnoh coordinator, who took a step backwards almost in indignance. That Misty girl sure had such rude manners... "We're just asking you to help us a little, at least until Dawn is healthy again. We've seen you know your way around Pokemon, and if you joined us at least for a while, we could be able to better face Team Rocket and Team Vicious. After all, you did help us fight them and save Dawn, right?"

Ursula sighed as she twirled her spiral-shaped twintails. "I think we'd better clarify a few things here, Misty..." she stated, somewhat annoyed. "Dee-Dee and I are not friends at all, eversince her Pachirisu refused the muffin I gave him! I helped you because we had a common enemy, and because you helped me get free from Team Rocket, and repaying you for that was the least I could do. And I helped you save Dee-Dee because, even though I don't like her, I couldn't leave her injured in that place! But as for the rest... this Team Rocket, Team Vicious, Team Whatever thing is your business! I want no part in this!"

Misty was tempted to pull out her mallet and whack that snob upside her head, but she held that instinct at bay. "Ugh... please, Ursula, this is not the time for such things! You know how things are, don't you? Why don't you want to help us anymore?"

"Misty, when I say no, I mean no! What part of this don't you get?" Ursula cut to the chase.

The redheaded Gym Leader felt a vein pop up on her head. She had predicted Ursula to be stubborn, but that was just ridiculous! However, she kept her calm as she tried to think of another way she could tackle the problem. "Ursula..." she said, shaking her head. "No matter what you might think about that, this does concern you, actually! Should I remind you that Team Rocket had their sights set on you for quite a while already, considering you are a Grand Festival finalist? And since you even helped foil their plans, they will probably try to get revenge on you. They'll try to either take you out or force you to join them, so you can't just wash your hands of them, and say it's none of your business."

Ursula said nothing, but her frown told Misty that her words were having an effect on the Sinnoh coordinator. Ursula had probably seen that there was truth to Misty's words, and that had shaken her up a little.

"I don't want to force you, let ths be clear." Misty went on. "But I think that would be the best thing for you and us both. You washed our hand, we wash yours, see?"

Ursula crossed her arms and looked down, still not completely convinced. However, it was clear that Misty's words were having an effect, and the spiral-haired girl could see that she wasn't in a good situation. And all this just because at the last moment she had decided to go to Kanto instead of Hoenn...

Finally, Ursula relented, sighed and shook her head, accepting Misty's idea. "Alright then... as long as this thing isn't over, I suppose we're on the same side. But this does not mean that we have to be friends, or that I have changed my mind about you in any way, okay? It's just me being pragmatic."

"Good enough for me." Misty answered. "Alright then... as soon as Dawn can get out of hospital, we'll go back to Pallet Town, the town our journey started from... and we'll try to see what the next move should be, okay?"

"I'm okay with it, you know Kanto better anyway..." Ursula answered with a shrug. However, she had to admit that she was really curious about seeing a new place, and the idea of travelling together with Ash, Misty and Brock was probably not going to be as bad as it sounded... sure, she'd never say it out loud in front of them!

Misty smiled, thinking that at least one problem had been solved. Now it was a matter of waiting to be back in Pallet Town and talking to Professor Oak, but at least now they had an extra ally.

Speaking of allies, Misty thought to herself as she and Ursula walked to a waiting room, what about Jessie, James and Meowth? Aside from showing up at the hospital for a short while, in order to check on Ash and Dawn, she hadn't seen them at all. Pity, she really did want to thank them over the help they had given. Once more, the clumsy trio had shown they weren't as bad as they tried to appear...

**oooooooooo **

Just then, the same people Misty was thinking of were flying over the Sevii Archipelago in their hot air balloon, observing the view with some melancholy. They had lived a really unexpected adventure there, and they had helped those who were supposedly their enemies get out of a pretty bad pinch. Yeah, truly an usual situation... but there were a few problems to tackle now, not the least of which the fact that, well, they had thrown a bit of a wrench in Team Rocket's plans...

These were the thoughts going through James' head at least, as the azure-haired young man sighed and turned to his partner-in-crime while the hot air balloon rose through the morning sky. "Say, Jessie... aren't you worried about what the boss will do as soon as he gets to know what we've done?" he stated meekly. "After all, we went up against some of the top Team Rocket executives! We were already in pretty low standing... and now, the boss is never going to forgive us! I'm afraid we kind of trapped ourselves with our own hands..."

"I'm trying to think of a way to solve this problem as well, James..." Jessie answered, though it was plain that she was rather worried over what they had done. The fact that they had damaged a Team Rocket project in order to get their revenge on Archer and his men was not something that could just be glossed over...

And that was when Meowth looked up, a serious expression etched on his feline face, and his tail straight up in attentiveness. Both of his teammates turned to him in puzzlement, knowing that whenever Meowth had such a reaction, it was because he'd thought up something outrageous... of course, the question was whether this was going to end well for them! "Say, guys... I was just thinking about this whole thing, and I ended up realizing... we really don't have a reason for going back to Team Rocket, do we?" he exclaimed decisively.

Needless to say, this had both of them widen their eyes in shock and surprise. Was Meowth suggesting what they were thinking he was suggesting? "Wh... WHAT? Hold... hold on a minute here, Meowth? Are you sure you haven't swallowed a hairball that messed up your brain? You... you aren't suggesting..." the girl started to say.

"You are suggesting... we just abandon Team Rocket?" James exclaimed.

"Why not? It's not like we were having much success as villains!" Meowth answered. "Really, guys, let's face it - we've been running after Pikachu for four or five years now... I have honestly lost count by now... and it should be clear by now that we just don't have what it takes to be evil! How about... we just drop this whole pretense and become travelling trainers, like so many people do? Make something out of our lives? Think outside our usual boxes? If you ask me, it's not like we have much else to lose! And since the boss seems to be preoccupied with this whole gem thing, he's not likely to pay much attention to us, is there? C'mon, just think about it. We still travel together as a team, try to find a better life for us... and we still get to be away from our former lives! How is that not a good thing?"

Jessie and James stood dumbfounded, looking at each other in complete wonder. They had to admit, Meowth was actually making sense! Had they gotten away from Team Rocket, they would have spared themselves the constant humiliations they faced from their higher-ups, they would not have blasted off at the speed of light for the umpteenth time after their futile attempt to catch Pikachu... and most of all, they would have still gotten to be together! Now that they thought about it, they realized that the advantages far exceeded the drawbacks...

After thinking about it for a few seconds, Jessie's face lit up in joy! "Meowth... let me say it, you're a veritable genius!"

"Yeah! Where would we be without you?" James exclaimed in joy. "Thanks to this idea, we'll manage to get away from our old lives... and who knows, maybe we'll also get to be famous Pokemon trainers or coordinators! Hey, Jessie, you haven't lost your skill from when you were up against the blue-haired twerp, did you?"

"Is that even a question to ask, James?" Jessie replied. "I'm even better than I was back then!"

"Hehehee... modesty aside, true genius is never recognized until the very end!" Meowth stated, his tail and ears kept proudly straight. "Then... we'll just have to fly low for a while, so we'll escape any unwelcome attention. We'll get ready for our comeback... and when the time comes, we'll show the world what we are all about! It will be our moment of glory!"

"Got that right, Meowth!" Jessie exclaimed. "And even Team Vicious and Team Rocket will have to recognize that we mean business!"

"They're in for trouble... make it double!" James finished, whipping out his trademark red rose out of nowhere and letting a few petals fall off of it! As their hot air balloon kept floating towards the horizon, the trio felt a new determination building up inside of them, knowing that, this time, they were getting a once-in-a-lifetime chance to turn things around...

**oooooooooo**

"So, they went away without even waiting for us to thank them?" Dawn asked, somewhat sadly, as she looked out towards the clear blue sky from her hospital bed. "That's too bad, I would have liked them to come... guess next time we meet them, they'll still be trying to capture Pikachu..."

Misty combed her hair back with her hand and shrugged nonchalantly. "I guess so... it wouldn't really surprise me, anyway!" the redheaded Water-type expert answered. "After all, it was pretty much the same way when I was part of the team... we had to ally with Team Rocket from time to time because of circumstances, in order to face certain problems... and as soon as things were back to normal, they'd simply go off and try to catch Pikachu once again! What can I say, some people just never learn..."

All those in the room chuckled at this, seeing the funny side of the situation... then Ash, after making sure the sling holding his left arm was still in place, recalled everyone's attention on the main problem. "Well... as for ance and the others, does any one of you know what they're planning to do?" the young boy asked. "They've been locked in that room for quite a while now, and they haven't been heard from..."

Gary nodded. It was true that Lance, Lorelei, Miyu and Homura had been away for quite some time. "I guess they have their own problems to deal with, Ashy-boy... between Team Rocket and Team Vicious, even the Pokemon League will probably have its hands full." the young researcher answered.

There was a knock at the door, and Dawn turned that way to give the person permission to enter. "Er... okay, come in!" the blue-haired girl said just as the door clacked open, letting Ursula in. Dawn immediately noticed how her rival seemed somewhat absent, probably due to lack of sleep. "Oh... hi, Ursula, you alright?"

"I should be the one asking that, Dee-Dee... you're the one stuck in that hospital bed, last time I checked." Ursula answered. "Anyway, I'm okay. I just wanted to tell you guys that the reunion is almost over. They should soon come and tell us what they've decided."

"I see..." Brock answered, before stopping cold and beginning to stare with a familiar enraptured expression as the Nurse Joy that had been assigned to Dawn's room came in right behind Ursula and had approached the injured girl's bed, oblivious to the casanova wannabe who was nowstaring at her, his eyes turned into pink hearts!

"Oh, boy..." Misty murmured, placing a hand on her head in exasperation. "Every pretty girl beware, Brock is on the hunt..."

"Hello, nurse Joy!" Dawn greeted the pink-haired nurse, ignoring Brock's color change! "Is there anything you need to tell me?"

"Hi, Dawn! Well, no, nothing yet, though we should soon have your radiographies ready so we can assess your conditions a little better. Still, don't worry, we haven't seen any complication yet, it's just something that we had to do as part of the procedure. I just came here to see how you were doing, and whether you had some fever, or something like that. What about your legs? Do they hurt a lot?"

Dawn passed her hands on her casts. "Not really, thankfully... I even managed to sleep without problems!" she calmly answered. Joy nodded, before handing Dawn a thermometer which the blue-haired girl placed under her left armpit in order to check her own body temperature.

"Well, that's a good sign at least." the pink-haired nurse stated. "Keep that thermometer there for a couple minutes, then we'll check... what about you guys, are you alright? Ash, your arm isn't giving you problems, is it? I ask because I see that you're already up and about."

The young boy gave a thumbs-up with his right hand. "No problem, Nurse Joy! We're all doing okay, and even my arm, in the end, should just be a small inconvenience." he answered. Joy was about to say she was glad to know that... but she was interrupted when Brock, predictably enough, literally popped up in front of her and delicately held her hand, giving her his most charming smile!

"And since there's nothing we need to worry about at the moment, my dearest Joy... what do you say we later take a stroll on this island's beautiful beach, us two together? With the golden sand, the endless ocean, the luxurious forest..." the young man started to say, trying to get poetical about it all...

And, again, predictably enough, Croagunk's Pokeball opened, and the toad-like Pokemon appeared next to his trainer and stabbed his buttocks with a well-placed Poison Jab! The usual scene repeated under the surprised eyes of both Nurse Joy and Ursula, with Brock gritting his teeth and becoming completely stiff, before dropping to the floor and being dragged away by the ear by an annoyed Misty!

"Ugh... the stars... in the sky... the pain... in my ear..." the hapless casanova murmured, as Croagunk put his hands on his hips and nodded in a 'serves you right' kind of way.

"You always have to be recognized, do you? And I bet you can even tell this Joy and the one from Knot Island apart, while you're at it!" Misty repriminded him.

Ash shook his head and chuckled, before apologizing on his friend's behalf. "Er... hehehee... we're sorry about that, Nurse Joy... that's just my friend Brock, and his way of complimenting any girl around his age or older he finds pretty!"

"And that one..." Gary stated, pointing to Misty still dragging Brock away by the ear. "is Misty's way of keeping him in check!"

"You're going to get used to it, Ursula, it's just a matter of time!" Dawn reassured her rival. For a moment, Ursula's eyes turned into a pair of tiny dots in amazement... then, they turned back to normal size, and the rich heiress crossed her arms on her chest and started chuckling.

"Hehehee... you sure know some strange people, don't you, Dee-Dee?" she asked mockingly. "That does explain a lot..."

"Well, since you're going to travel with Ash for a while... you'll have a lot of time to see just how strange they are!" Dawn joked, eliciting a brief chorus of laughter from all those in the room, Brock included. Ursula turned away in apparent annoyance, but Dawn was sure she had glimpsed her rival's lips curl upwards in an attempt to supress laughter...

**oooooooooo **

At the same time, in a Pokemon Center in Hoenn...

The green-haired teenager was busy reading a newspaper as his Pokemon - an Absol, a Roserade, a Masquerain, a Butterfree and a Flygon - were about to finish their meal. Now, whoever knew the teenager in question, would have probably been a little surprised: Drew, the skilled green-haired coordinator from LaRousse City, was not exactly the kind of person to stay bent over newspapers, as those who knew him would have said, envisioning him to be the kind of person who relies more on personal experience. However, the situation was somewhat different now, and Drew had to admit, to himself at least, that what he was reading was not exactly very reassuring...

It was really fresh news - one of Hoenn's most famous coordinators, noted for his strange, rather effeminate behaviour, and for his Cacturne dress - had disappeared under mysterious circumstances, and the police was at a loss as to the possible cause. The culprits hadn't left many tracks, though rumour had it that a mysterious figure accompanied by a Glaceon had been seen around the place where the disappearence had taken place.

Drew frowned in suspicion. A mysterious figure with a Glaceon... that sounded strangely, not to mention, unsettlingly, familiar. A Glaceon wasn't exactly the kind of Pokemon that was seen very often, especially in Hoenn, and there was only one person he knew of that had one such Pokemon in her team. However, after reflecting about this for a short while, Drew shrugged and shook his head. What kind of messed-up idea, he mentally chided himself. It couldn't be her... it was obviously someone else who had a Glaceon in his team, and who just happened to be there when Harley had disappeared. Sure that didn't make the disappearence any less unsettling, but to think it was actually her behind it was ludicrous...

As Drew put the newspaper back in its place, and checked whether his Pokemon were finished eating, he did not see a short, masked figure sneaking a peek inside the Pokemon Center from a nearby window, trying to suppress her accelerated heartbeat. To see those familiar green hair and that roguish grin in such a situation was akin to torture for her... It was him, Drew, and he was to be her next target!

May walked away from the window and back into the open road, her disguise managing to keep her from being recognized. After she was sure that she was at a satisfying disance away from the Pokemon Center, she took a look around and, as soon as she was sure nobody was in the proximities, took out a comm device from a pocket and activated it.

"Hello? Agent May here. I... er... just found the second target." she murmured, just loud enough for the Team Vicious commander to hear her.

Demitri's cruel nasal voice answered from the other side. "_That's very good, my dear May... I see you're doing a good job of it, I like people who take their job seriously!_" he answered mockingly. "_So, when are you going to move out and capture him?_"

"Well... not right now, there are too many people around, and I'd just get caught if I tried..." May answered, hoping she sounded convincing enough. "I... will try to take him off guard as soon as he's at a safe distance from this city. Don't worry, I won't have any delays."

"_Good._" Demitri answered. "_I look forward to good news from you, and remember... do not try to be smart, or your little brother gets it._"

A fearful shiver ran down May's spine, but she forced herself to remain calm. She had to do it... even though working for those people disgusted her, she had to endure for Max's sake. "Of course, commander Demitri... don't worry, I won't make any mistakes. You... can count on me!"

"_Well, that's what we are going tosee right now, my dear May..._" he answered cruelly. "_You've been sensible as of now. Try to keep it up._"

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Well, there you go! It was mostly a filler chapter, I know, but it should do its job at setting up a new confrontation, this time in the continent of Hoenn! Yes, folks, Drew and May are going to meet again soon... only, it probably won't be in the way my fellow Contestshippers would like! Still, I can assure you that you don't wanna miss it! So... stay tuned for next chapter!**

**See you soon!**


	39. Vicious Blackmail

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! As you can see, I'm back from my vacation and ready to continue my stories, stating from this one! It's abouttime I cncentrated again on the Hoenn crew, who will take the spotlight for a few chapters or so... last time, we left Drew facing a mysterious figure (by now, we all know who it is...), and in this chapter, our favourite debonair coordinator will have to try and find some answers to his questions! It's not going to be a long chapter, but it will surely be important for future developments!**

**Therefore, get ready to immerse yourselves again in the world of Pokemon! My Super Robot Taisen story should be next up for updating!**

**Thanks to you all for your reviews, and enjoy the read!**

**oooooooooo **

**Chapter 39 - Vicious Blackmail**

The cell Max had been in for quite a few days now looked more and more restraining as time went by to the young novice trainer, who was now sitting thoughtfully on the worn-out bed he had to use, his eyes affixed to the ceiling as if trying to find a way to get himself out of that fix. Sadly, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed obvious that Team Vicious had barred every possible escape route to them. There was no way to get out of that cage... and even if there was, he and Hilde wouldn't even have made three steps before being found and recaptured. If only they still had their Pokemon, they might have had a chance, but of course the guards had been careful to take them away...

"It's been way too long since we've been locked in this awful place!" Hilde lamented from the nearby cell, pacing back and forth like a captive tigress. She seemed to be in the process of somehow venting her anger, and if she hadn't found that way to do it, she would have dropped the aloof act and begun freaking out. "One would think that, since we've been locked up here, they'd also make use of us, huh, Max?"

The bespectacled boy sighed and wiped some sweat off his forehead. "I really have no idea, Hilde, criminal organizations aren't exactly part of the topics I studied before starting on this journey..." he said, allowing himself a bit of sarcasm. Hilde wrinkled her nose, but understood that her question hadn't really been all that well thought-out, and waved a hand in front of herself as if saying 'never mind'.

"Alright, alright... but still, if they want to make us into Team Vicious grunts, why do they keep us in this stinking cell instead of training us? That's what I'd like to know..."

"And that's what I will explain now to you, little brat!" a shrieky voice, belonging to someone Max knew all too well by now, answered the question. It was Demitri, the young Team Vicious executive commanding that small Hoenn division... and he was now joined by a reluctant Stefan, who seemed to be there only because Demitri had ordered him to be. Max and Hilde immediately glared at him in alarm and antipathy, as the young Team Vicious lieutenant got closer to the bars that withheld his newest recruit's little brother, smirking in superiority.

"Don't worry, we haven't forgotten about you... we were simply taking a good look at your Pokemon teams, so that we could work out what might be your righteous place in the new and improved Team Vicious. I have to say, to be complete newbies, it's kinda hard to figure you out. Anyway, now that I think I've gotten it, we can finally begin your training proper! Does that not make you honored?" he asked.

"I could just cry in joy." Hilde deadpanned, as Stefan took some rusty keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door to Max's cell. Another of the evil organization's henchmen opened Hilde's door and roughly pulled the young girl out, earning himself a scornful glare from her.

With a demented laugh, Demitri ordered for the hostages to be taken away. "Hehehee... you are really funny, little brat, but you'll soon change your tone after you're through with the special training we have gotten ready for you! Oh, but don't worry your pretty little head off... as soon as you're done, you'll be little more than an obedient Team Vicious puppet! And you too, four-eyes... not only you'll make a promising grunt, but we can also use you as leverage against your beloved big sister, just in case she gets ideas! That's what I call catching two Spearows with one Pokeball! And now... get a move on! We don't have all day, you know!"

As Stefan opened the door, Demitri got inside and roughly dragged Max out, causing him to briefly moan in pain and struggle against the hold... but Demitri held tight and pushed him out, where Hilde was already standing. "Out of here, kid! Now we'll really begin playing for keeps with you... and don't you dare disappoint us!" 

**oooooooooo**

Drew had to admit, he just couldn't stop thinking about that article he had just read: Harley's disappearance and that mysterious figure with a Glaceon... there was something unsettling about both these things, though at the moment, as he made his way towards his next destination, Lavaridge Town, there was something else bugging him. Still, there wasn't much he could do about it for now, and he had to concentrate on training his own Pokemon. The new coordinating season was about to begin, and he'll be darned if he was going to flunk out at the Grand Festival.

He had almost gotten to the intersection of two roads, when something caught his attention: a small figure wearing a black uniform with a mirrored red R drawn on her chest, and an helmet that reminded him of a gas mask, which prevented him from seeing the girl's face. She had just walked out of a thick bush, and had now placed herself right in front of him, clearly intending to stop him from going any further. Wordlessly, the mysterious figure - who seemed to be about Drew's age - stopped a few meters in front of the green-haired boy, who kept staring at her with suspicion, and took out a Pokeball in a clearly threatening gesture.

"Who are you?" Drew asked, his hand already inching towards one of his own Pokeballs. "What do you want from me?"

The masked girl decided facts spoke louder than words and threw her Pokeball, letting out a threatening, lethal-looking Pokemon: a Blaziken, a Fire / Fighting type that looked like a bird-man with firey red feathers, with yellow, beige or grey spots on his lower legs and on the hair-like extensions on the feathers on his head. He had a cruelly curved beak, and his three-fingered arms ended in sharp claws, a V-shaped crest on the front part of his face, and three spiky extensions on both sides of the face, giving him an even more threatening countenance. Red flames blazed on his feathery hide, showing that the Pokemon was ready and willing to fight... but Drew did not feel intimidated at all: he had already seen a Blaziken before, and he knew what to expect from him.

However, there was something about Blaziken that had reawakened in him those annoying suspicions he had had earlier: there was only one person he knew who had a Blaziken, and the coincidences he had noticed were beginning not to look like coincidences any more... however, he was not distracted by this, and called on the field one of his strongest Pokemon.

"Talk is cheap, I guess. Fine by me." the green-haired boy answered. "If that's the case... come out, Flygon!"

Drew's Pokeball flew and let out a strange-looking Pokemon that resembled some kind of cross between a lizard and a dragonfly. It was about a meter and a half long, covered in fine green scales that became darker on the head, the rear paws and on a few rings on his long whiplike tail, which ended in a series of colorful rhomboidal feathers. His red eyes were quite large, compared with the rest of his body, and they were compound and multifaceted like those of a dragonfly or an adult antlion. A pair of long antennae whipped about on his head, and his wings were large, rhomboidal and rimmed with red. It was a Flygon, a Dragon / Ground type that had always been an important part of Drew's team.

Blaziken did not waste time and attacked as soon as his masked trained gave him permission to, leaping towards the dragon-bug in order to hit him with his trademark Blaze Kick, a kick with a leg engulfed in red flames! Unfortunately for him, though, Drew's Flygon was not going to be surprised by such a straightforward move!

"Dodge that, Flygon! Use Fly!" he ordered. Just in time, the dragonfly-reptile cross soared upwards and managed to dodge the fiery kick, whose intense heat scalded his tail feathers slightly. With an annoyed keening sound, Flygon took flight and began circling his opponent, before swooping down with the greatest of ease and the grace and power of a diving hawk! But Blaziken reacted with unexpected skill, and after bending his knees and crouching low for an instant, leapt up and punched upwards, in a perfect rendition of a Dragon Punch! Flygon's compound eyes widened a little as he broke his run in midair and managed to barely dodge Blaziken's Sky Uppercut attack, which still managed to bruise his wing and bring him to the ground in a rather undignified manner. Drew grit his teeth, seeing his worst fears coming more and more true every moment... that mysterious girl's technique really looked like that of someone he knew very well...

"Don't get intimidated, Flygon! Respond with Aerial Ace!" Drew ordered. The Dragon / Ground type quickly took flight against and struck Blaziken with the edge of his wings just as the Fire / Fighting type was descending from his uppercut, sending him tumbling to the ground. But the firey-feathered Pokemon quickly stood up again and struck back with a lethally accurate Slash attack, hitting Flygon on the back with his front claws and causing him to falter for a short while. Luckily, Flygon managed to keep his altitude, just in time for DRew to issue a new command.

"And now, Flygon... use Dragon Claw!" the boy ordered. A multicolored aura surrounded Flygon's small, seemingly harmless forearms, and the dragonfly-like Pokemon dived down and slashed at Blaziken, who was forced to fall back on the defensive! The dragon-insect did not let up, and slashed more and more times, causing the mighty Fire / Fighting type to reel... And when the right time came, Blaziken managed to dodge a Dragon Claw from Flygon and somersaulted right under him, then dashed towards Drew and tried to catch him! But the green-haired boy stood calm, stoically waiting for Blaziken to come close...

And just when it seemed Drew would have been captured, his Flygon suddenly reemerged from the ground right in front of him and headbutted Blaziken in the stomach as he soared upwards, kicking up a huge mound of earth that struck the Fire / Fighting type like a miniature geyser! Blaziken squaeked in rage and surprise, before actually ending up sprawled on the ground, even though he managed to climb back to his feet in short order. He quickly resumed his fighting stance in front of Flygon, who had just now regained height and was waiting for a new attack!

"Surprised? We were just trying to confuse your Blaziken, so that my Flygon could use a Dig attack when you two least expected it. And it seems to have worked. As I thought, you are trying to capture me... my question is, why is that? I'd like to know what you and your group have got against me." Drew said, trying to get a better look at his mysterious opponent. Unfortunately, the glass plating of the mask prevented him from seeing his opponent's face, though it was pretty clear that it was a girl.

Once again, no answer was given. The mysterious opponent limited herself to motioning to her Blaziken with an arm, and the Fire / Fighting type shrieked once again and got in a fighting stance. He then flexed his pectoral muscles for a few seconds as he used his Bulk Up move to improve his physical offense and defense power, while Flygon flew lower and spread his magnificent wings. Each Pokemon was just waiting for the other to make the next move...

Nobody moved for a few seconds, only waiting for the other part to show even the slightest sign of hesitation or faltering in order to get in a decisive blow. Finally, the unknown girl motioned to her Pokemon once again, and Blaziken leapt up, using a Bounce attack in the hope of leaving Flygon confused and disoriented. The antlion dodged, keeping an eye on his opponent and getting ready to dodge when the time was right, but Blaziken caught both him and Drew off guard by cancelling the move in midair and then sweeping down with a fire kick! For a moment, Drew's calm and collected expression left place to one of shock as he realized his Pokemon was now in for another Blaze Kick!

"Take care, Flygon!" Drew exclaimed... but it was too late for dodging! Blaziken's Blaze Kick found its mark, hitting Flygon straight in the chest and bringing him down, dragging him in the dust for several metres before Blaziken halted and jumped backwards, backflipping to his trainer's side with his leg still shooting flames! This time, Flygon took a little more time to stand up, and it was clear that the latest hit had left a mark, as Flygon was a little clumsy in his flight, and had a burn mark in the place where he had been hit. Blaziken, instead, seemed to be still up and about, despite having taken a few hits himself. "Don't get intimidated, Flygon! It's still not over!"

But Blaziken and the unknown trainer decided to push their advantage: the Fire / Fighting typeattacked again, this time with a Fire Spin, shooting a small flame from his beak and hitting the ground right in front of Flygon. The flames soon spread to form a circle around the Dragon / Ground type, and a veritable wall of fire rose around him a split second later... but Flygon easily defended himself by wrapping himself with his wings, warding off the flames.

"That's good, Flygon! Now, use Fly torise above the flames, and Gust to disperse them!" The gren-haired boy exclaimed, quickly thinking of a viable strategy to avoid that attack. Flygon nodded, spreading his graceful wings, and soared above the spinning flames, then started frantically beating his wings... and releasing a powerful gust of wind that blew away the wall of fire and shot some of the burning flames back at Blaziken! The chicken-like Pokemon squeaked in annoyance, shielding his eyes with his arms, and both Drew and Flygon capitalized from this mistake! "Good. And now... Earthquake!"

The dragon-garner Pokemon dropped to the ground, shaking it with his considerable weight and unleashing his most powerful and reliable Ground-type move! The mysterious girl actually seemed to flinch as the earth literally rose in front of Blaziken and slammed him with a powerful shockwave that sent him tumbling down! The seismic movement ceased quickly, but it had been more than enough to seriously weaken the Fire / Fighting type, who was now having more trouble standing up. Both Pokemon seemed to be about to score a decisive blow, and both Drew and his opponent knew they had to give the right orders, in order to get their victory!

"Fine, then... let's make things a little harder on him." Drew thought out loud... just before giving his Pokemon a new order. "Now, Flygon... use Sandstorm and confuse him a little!"

The draconic bug nodded and dropped down, starting to thrash about like a playful kitten... only, because of his sheer size and strength, he was kicking up massive amounts of dust and dirt which he was hurling at Blaziken! The Fire / Fighting type squawked and covered his eyes with his arms as countless fine projectile bombarded him from all sides... and then furiously started to inch forward again, trying to once again hit with a Sky Uppercut... but he was forced to hold back as the flurry of dust and rocks grew too intense for him to walk through! Not only that, but his opponent now seemed to have become faster and more agile, as if the sandstorm enhanced his movements instead of obstructing them!

"That's good, Flygon! And now... use Dragon Claw again!" Drew ordered. Indifferent to the sandstorm, Flygon swept down and slashed Blaziken with rainbow-hued claws, causing him to flinch and forcing him to put an hand on the ground to keep himself from falling. Flygon flew back up and attacked again, this time with a swift and accurate Faint Attack... but Blaziken took the hit without many problems and struck back with a powerful Double Kick that staggered Flygon! Both Pokemon separated and then closed in on each other once again, using a Wing Attack and a Blaze Kick, and hitting each other at the exact same time! There was a deafening clash all around that forced Drew and his opponent to stand back... and soon, the sandstorm died down, revealing that Blaziken and Flygon were still in contact with each other, the dragon-bug's left wing pressed upon Blaziken's chest, and the fighting chicken's right leg pounding into Flygon's side!

Several seconds went by without anything happening... then, both Pokemon groaned and fell to the ground in exhaustion, ending the first confrontation in a draw for both their trainers. Drew frowned... and recalled Flygon into his Pokeball. "It's okay, Flygon. You did all you could, and you should rest now. Let's see what this... strange person here... has got to send against me!" he said, pausing a little in order to make itclear that, to him, this girl wasn't actually that mysterious.

What the girl did a moment later both confirmed to Drew that he was right, and made him wish he was wrong instead. She took out another Pokeball and sent out her next Pokemon - a beautiful giant butterfly with black wings dotted in yellow, red and blue, grey face, belly and paws, and long black antennae jutting out of her forehead. Her mouth was a long, thin proboscis that she was keeping folded like a spiral, and her shining blue eyes aggressively glared at Drew. It was a beautifly, a Bug / Flying Pokemon known for its deceptively cute appearence, which belied a vicious personality. And it was a Pokemon that was really familiar to Drew.

"Well then. This is all the confirmation I needed." the green-haired boy said as he took out his next Pokeball. "However, there's something I need to know now... and I think you owe me an explanation, May."

The one in front of him, who had had no visible reaction until then, suddenly seemed to freeze in fear, and even if she was wearing a visor, Drew could feel her eyes going wide beneath it! She took a step backwards, as her Beautifly fluttered protectively in front of her...

"Then I got it right..." Drew commented. "Exactly, what is it that you're doing? Why are you attacking me? And... it was you that attacked Harley a few days ago, right? What just happened to you? The May I know would never act like this!"

Too stunned to answer on the double, May gulped and tried to hide the truth, knowing all too well that Max's life was at stake. "This... this is nothing that concerns you, Drew! Looks like you didn't know me as well as you thought! And now... stop saying such stupid things, and let's fight! Go, Beautifly!"

The giant butterfly let out a shrill, melodious call and took flight, before launching herself at Drew, who acted quickly and dodged before letting his own Pokemon out: a beautiful white-furred animal with several black body parts leapt out of the Pokeball and struck Beautifly with the crescent moon-shaped blade jutting out of his head, causing the giant bug to falter and drop to the ground - Drew's Absol had intervened quickly and dealt a nasty blow to Beautifly, who recovered fairly quickly and proceeded to beat her wings frantically, unleashing a storm of sonic waves at the Dark-type! However, Drew was once again quick to save his Pokemon from a super-effective attack...

"Absol, disperse that attack with Swords Dance!" the green-haired boy exclaimed. Just in time, the Dark-type started spinning on himself, elegantly using his blade to ward off the sonic waves threatening to overwhelm him, and boosting his own attacking power at the same time. Beautifly flew up, and tried to attack with a status-changing move... but Drew had already counted on that, and managed to anticipate the move!

"Now, Absol... use Aerial Ace!" Drew exclaimed. The white-furred Absol leapt up and slashed with his blade again, hitting Beautifly and causing her to flinch... but this time, the ferocious butterfly reacted by unrolling her proboscis and using it to stab his opponent's shoulder, in her own rendition of a Bug Bite attack! With a furious shake, Absol managed to get the stinger out of his fur and to shake off the aggressive Bug-type, then executed a spectacular Psycho Cut that sent a semi-transparent blade of energy against his opponent, who barely managed to dodge that. Then, using her Giga Drain attack, Beautifly began drawing a bunch of strange green energy spheres from Absol's body and absorbing them into her colorful wings. The giant butterfly felt reinvigorated all of a sudden, as Absol lost his footing for a second: that move had absorbed part of his own energies and transferred them to Beautifly, causing Drew to frown noticeably: if this was going to keep up, the battle would have been long indeed...

"I don't know what's up with you, May..." the young coordinator murmured to himself. "But it's clear that something is eating at you. And I'm going to find out what it is, no matter what!"

**oooooooooo **

A small underground arena, littered with obstacles similar to those one might find on a military track field, the ground covered in fine red sand, and surmounted by a dome-shaped roof upon which several lamps had been installed, bathing the field in an eerie light - this was the place Max and Hilde were using for their ''training'', under the constant scrutinizing of several gas mask wearing grunts. Although Max did find it odd that he and Hilde were going to be physically trained themselves, instead of doing practice matches with their Pokemon...

Using all of his strength, Max managed to lift himself up the unstable-looking wall that the instructor had placed on the training field... then, using extreme care, he dropped down and landed upright on the ground before stopping to catch his breath. He was aware he was not going to get any special treatment, but it was a whole other can of worms to be almost exhausted after only ten minutes of training!

"Phew... wow... you sure... don't believe in doing things by halves, huh?" Max wheezed. "I think I'll lose every meal I'm going to have, after this!"

"Shut up, brat, and get to work!" Demitri shut him up from the side of the arena, threateningly toying with a whip he did not look like he was going to be hesitant to use on Max and Hilde. "Our grunt have to be the best ever to be seen in every continent! We will not put up with slacking off!"

"Yeah, this coming from the guy who's standing right there watching..." Hilde snarked as she picked herself up. She was just as exhausted as Max was, but her stoic and aloof expression had not waned. "If you're really as much of a tough guy as you claim to be, why don't you show that to us, huh?"

A rage-filled glare lit up in Demitri's eyes, and he slashed at her with his whip, making it crack a few centimeters away from her right ear! The girl winced and shifted her head a little, but she had no other reaction - she wanted that scoundrel to know that she was not afraid of him. Max shivered in horror as he saw his friend and rival almost get hit, but there was nothing he could do about it...

"SHUT UP, LITTLE BRAT!" the young Team Vicious executive roared, losing control for a moment. "I have no need to demonstrate anything, you little worm! I am a Team Vicious executive, and I will not debase myself to give demonstrations to trash like you! And now, get a move on! As soon as you show passable improvement, we'll give you your Pokemon back. Provided, of course, they have enough potential."

"What do you mean? Huff... phew... " Max panted as he began running again, while Hilde was being forced to crawl through a plastic tube barely wide enough to accomodate her. "You mean that... the Pokemon you find unsatisfactory... will be discarded?"

"Why not?" Demitri answered serenely, retrieving his sadistic sense of humour. "Team Vicious ha no need for weak and useless Pokemon, and if I can speak my mind, your Poochyena and Zigzagoon don't look like anything to write home about! But... I'll have to take a good look before deciding, so you don't need to worry just yet! Heheheee... anyway, back to your training!"

Despite being anxious for his Pokemons' fate, Max had no choice but to swallow any protest and keep running...

**oooooooooo**

"So, Cezar... no need for me to repeat myself, is there?" the Iron-Masked Marauder asked in a falsely affable voice, his half-hidden face glaring from the screen he had appeared on, right in front of one of his executives. "Paul is one of the best trainers in his age group in all Sinnoh, and he's a talent we cannot let go. Should he once again refuse to join us, dispose of him. That should be a no-brainer, right?"

"Of course, my master..." the Team Vicious executive answered, smiling through serrated lips. "A skilled trainer such as Paul could become really dangerous if left to his own devices. If we are to make our project come true, we haveto make sure Paul is either on our side, or on nobody's."

"You hit the nail on the head, so to speak." the Team Vicious leader answered, stroking his spiny beard. "Since you already have some experience with our man, you are the best person to deal with him and present him this choice. Of course, since he's so strong as a trainer, we'd better not take any chances, therefore... I'll see about getting Jakov to join you, as soon as he's back from Sinnoh. Empty-handed, sadly."

Cezar tilted his head on one side, his arrogant smile fading just a little. "Why Jakov? You should have seen by now that his attachment towards his Pokemon..." he grimaced, as if the thought of a trainer being kind to his own Pokemon was repugnant to him. "...will be his downfall. You have seen what he did in Sinnoh, right? He was beaten by those three girls..."

The Marauder shrugged. "Maybe, but apart from that, he never disapppointed me. And as long as my men do what I ask of them, I hardly care about the rest." he said, eschewing elegant turns of words. "That, this is the bottom line: you will rendezvous with Jakov shortly, and you'll resume pursuing Paul. I expect much of you... especially since my other executives would gladly take care of you, should you fail in your mission..."

Cezar shivered slightly at the mention of the other executives... and nodded, knwing what he had to do...

**oooooooooo**

The battle between Drew's Absol and May's Beautifly had been going on for quite a while now, without any of them gaining any noticeable advantage over the other. Night Slash dispersed Signal Beam. Faint Attack bounced harmlessly over Iron Defense. Both combatants were giving it their all, fighting with all of their might to gain even a cursory advantage. And both trainers were getting nervous - they weren't willing to waste any more time with that boring string of useless attacks, andwanted to seal the deal as soon as possible.

But while May was still tring to think of a way to get the upper hand, Drew had already thought of something to convince his friend and rival to spill the beans. "Very ell then... Absol, use a Future Sight attack, then concentrate on defense! I'll tell you when to counterattack!"

The Dark-type nodded and yelped in assent before concentrating just or a second, creating an azure aura around him that soon coalesced into an energy ball that soared up to the sky and disappeared among the clouds. A second later, May's Beautifly attacked again, her trainer encouraging her to end the battle as soon as she could, before the Future Sight attack could hit.

"Don't let up, Beautifly!" she exclaimed, her voice still muffled by the gas mask she wore. "Use a Gust attack, now!"

Again, the giant butterfly unleashed a rapid gust of wind by beating her wings, and managed to slap Absol in the face... but the white-furred Pokemon managed to mostly shrug off the blow and answered with Double Team, leaving after-images of himself that managed to confuse Beautifly, who futilely tried to spray them with a Stun Spore attack. Absol hopped from one side to the other, making himself hard to hit, and the giant butterfly was forced to dash here and there on the battlefield in order to aim well. Alarmed, Beautifly looked up, noticing that the Future Sight attack was getting nearer and nearer, and was about to hit her! It looked like sme sort of miniature blue comet, and Beautifly knew she had to wrap the whole thing up before it was too late... so, she interrupted her attempts to attack Absol and got ready to dodge the Future Sight as it got nearer...

"Absol, use Psycho Cut! Now!"

Just as Beautifly was beginning to move out of the way of the Future Sight, Absol fired a crescent-moon shaped projectile from his head blade and struck the giant butterfly head on, just as the delayed attack ht the ground and exploded, leaving a smoking crater behind! Beautifly shrieked as shewas flung backwards, right in her trainer's arms, and May yelped in surprise before falling to the ground and landing in a none-too-elegant manner, her helmet falling off her head from the sheer force of the low, to reveal a graceful face framed by two bangs of chestnut-colored hair!

"Ugh... you okay, Beautifly?" May asked, worried about her Pokemon, who simply shook the dizziness out of herself and nodded. May sighed in relief before glancing up to Drew, who was now standing a few meters away from her, his Absol by his side, and was just waiting for the girl to give an explanation for what she was doing...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**Author's Note: Hehee... cliffhanger! What will happen next? Whatever it is, you can be sure that things will get hectic again pretty soon! That's it for now... leave a review if you wish, and hope to see you again soon! **


	40. A Silent Call For Help

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**Hello, everyone! I'm finally back with the new chapter for this story! And believe me, there are still quite a lot of things waiting to happen at Hoenn, where Drew and May are now facing each other in a close battle! It looks like some secrets of Team Vicious are about to be unveiled, and you can bet that the higher-ups aren't exactly going to be thrilled about that!**

**In addition to this, in this chapter we'll have the honor of seeing an old face make her return, and believe me when I say that her contribution will be most welcome! How will our bold heroes be able to face whatever Team Vicious throws at them? And... will it be time for a reunion? To know that, you just have to read this chapter... and stay assured that I will start the next one soon enough, provided my PC holds tight!**

**For now, have fun reading this chapter... and leave me a review if you want! Bye!**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 38 - A Silent Call For Help**

Time seemed to have frozen as Drew and May looked in each other's eyes, the former still with his unspoken question in his eyes, and the latter with the expression of someone who knew she was cornered. Dreadful silence had fallen in the place where just a moment before their Pokemon were fighting each other... a grim, almost despairing silence, which made the girl wish she could just stand up and run away. Only her green-haired friend staring at her and waiting for an explanation was keeping her there...

"Drew..." May murmured as she caressed her Beautifly on the head. The butterfly-like Pokemon moved her thin antennae and unfurled her proboscis, as if she was ready to defend her trainer should Drew have asked the wrong question.

The green-haired boy sighed and turned around slightly, as not to embarass his friend. "Okay... guess I slightly overdid it, that much I can give you." he stated. "But... this doesn't change the fact that you owe me an explanation, May. Why did you join a criminal organization? Why did you attack me and Harley, and what do you want with us?"

May grit her teeth, wracking her brain in an attempt to come up with a convincing answer that wouldn't put Max in danger... but it seemed clear to her that she couldn't both have her cake and eat it, so she went for the lesser of the two evils, and decided to lie. "Hmph..." she snorted, trying to appear cold and unfeeling. "This is none of your business, Drew! You said I would never do such a thing, huh? Well, what do you know, anyway? Maybe I'm actually a bad person who joined Team Vicious to..."

She immediately clamped an hand over her mouth in horrified realization - she had just blurted the name of the organization that had her in the palm of their hand! Drew, for his part, squinted his eyes, refusing to be tricked by such an obvious lie. "May... you're a terrible liar, and you know that. And I know you too well to believe what you're trying to have me believe. There's something else to it, right? These... Team Vicious guys... are threatening you in some way, right?"

For the first time ever, May cursed Drew's sharpness. Because of his intuition, Max's life could be in danger now... and worse yet, it was partly her fault as well. If only she hadn't used two Pokemon that could easily be linked to her, her secret might have been safe now... But it was no use crying over spilt milk now, the best thing to do was try to salvage the situation.

"This... I don't know why I should answer this!" the chestnut haired girl angrily retorted as she let Beautifly soar again. "Beautifly, we're outta here for now! Use Whirlwind to cover our escape!"

"_Beauty!_" the giant butterfly nodded and unleashed a powerful blast of wind with a single clap of her magnificent wings, forcin Drew's Absol to reteat before the huge cloud of dust that was kicked up. The dust created a cloud around May and Beautifly, hiding them from Drew and his Pokemon's eyes, and both of them were forced to avert their faces in order not to find themselves with tons of sand in their eyes... and as soon as they could see again, they saw that both May and her Beautifly were gone, leaving them empty-handed and with the certainty that something awful was going on. Drew knew May all too well to believe that she had joined Team Vicious of her own free will... it sounded far more believable to him that Team Vicious was blackmaiing her somehow, forcing her to do things she didn't actually want to do. And Drew already had half a mind on how they could have done that...

"Darn... this is one bad situation, no two ways about it." he said to himself as he petted his Absol, who was still glaring at the place May and her Beautifly had been at. "The fact that May wanted me to know nothing of the whole situation makes it clear that they're using somethong or someone she cares for a lot in order to keep her under their thumb. And I'm willing to bet it's Max... they may quarrel a lot, but it's clear that they wouldn't wish anything to happen to each other. If that is the case, I'm afraid it will be hard to solve this whole mess. I certainly can't do it on my own..."

A small smile painted itself on the young coordinator's handsome face, and a few sparks shone around him! "Of course, if I were to speak with the right people, things wouldn't be so hopeless anymore!" he said to himself. "Well, Absol, I think we have our work cut out for us now! We need to... plan a little reunion for old times' sake!"

The Dark-type Pokemon almost seemed to grin. He had already understood what his trainer meant by that, and the idea appealed to him quite a bit. As soon as Absol nodded to him, Drew recalled the Dark-type in his Pokeball and once again turned to the road he was walking along before May attacked him. "Excellent, I knew you would understand! Okay then, let's get back to the Pokemon Center! We have an old friend to speak to... hopefully she will be able to help us, of course."

**oooooooooo**

Jakov hated to be pushed... especially when one reasoned that, when he had gained his title of Team Vicious commander, he was convinced that this would mean a quiet, comfortable life for both himself and his beloved Noctowl: sitting at a desk and ordering people around, while eating all the delicacies they wanted... and instead, now that the supreme leader had fixated on the Legendary Pokemon, he had been running all over Sinnoh and Hoenn. And the fact that the plan had been derailed the moment he had been defeated byZoey and her friends atop Mt. Coronet didn't help his case... nor did the fact that he was now forced to work alongide Cezar, the one he disliked the most amog his colleagues. There was something about his smug demeanor, his faux affable smile perpetually tamped upon his face, that almost forced Jakov to loathe Cezar - Jakov felt like Cezar would gladly have stabbed him in the back. However, orders were still orders, and Jakov couldn't just disobey... and what was their leader planning, anyway? Probably searching for the next Legendary Pokemon to chase after...

Jakov and Noctowl shook themselves out of their reverie as they got closer to Cezar's office, and the obese Team Vicious commander repressed his revultion and knocked at the door. There was the sound of a chair being moved on the other side of the door, and someone telling him to enter... and thinking it was safe now, Jakov pulle down the handle and entered...

Only to almost be hit in the face by a dart the moment he set foot in! His Noctowl widened his eyes in surprise and dodged sideways, almost hitting Jakov in the process... and the fat executive swayed to the side as a triumphant, high-pitched laugh echoed in the office!

"Hahahahaa! Well, what do you know? I had almost hit you!" Cezar laughed as he walked to his collegue, still holding a few playing darts in his hands! Just a couple inches more, and you'd have caught it in the cheekbone! Hehehee... so, how are things, my dear Jakov? I can see you don't lack appetite!"

"I was about to lose it just now..." Jakov corrected him sarcastically, as he glared at the dart embedded in the wall close to him. "What was the big idea, Cezar? You could have killed me with this stunt, you know that?"

Cezar seemed to shrug it off. "Hehee... I do know that, that's the fun of it!" he answered all too cheerfully. "Alright then... jokes aside, let's make a resume, shall we? The big boss wants us to work together to capture Paul, the runner-up to this year's Sinnoh Conference. I already tried to persuade the brat, and I used all of my diplomatic skills, but he foolishly refused. Said something about wanting to win by his own merits. Meh, these fair and square freaks baffle me."

"Yeah, yeah..." Jakov cut to the case, not wanting to waste time with pointless chatter. He was already asking himself how he was supposed to work with Cezar for days on end, when a few minutes with him were already trying his patience. "And now, the boss wants us to work together to either convince Paul or capture him. After all, he wouldn't want to let such a potentially useful pawn go."

His far too cheerful colleague crossed hisarm on his chest and nodded smugly. "Yep, yep... Isee you've hit the nail right on the head, my friend! Then... get a few Dark Pokemon ready, and leave those useless Slowking, Slaking and the rest here! At the moment, Paul is training his Pokemon on Mt. Silver, on the border between Johto and Kanto. We'll just have to catch him at the right moment, and we shouldn't have too much trouble getting him to join!"

"Dark Pokemon?" Jakov asked with a somewhat disgusted tone. "Hold on a sec, Cezar, I thought I had made clear what I thought on the subject! I don't like Pokemon to be used that way!"

He stopped himself short when Cezar, keeping that creepily jovial smile,whipped out another dart and threw it at Jakov's face, missing it by half an inch and causing the fat executive to yelp in fear as the metal point embedded itself in the wall!

"My, my... still following this childish reasoning, huh?" Cezar said, keeping that playful tone that only served to make him more terrifying. Jakov felt in danger staying around that maniac... Why shouldn't we use our Dark Pokemon, again? Or to use a more appropriate term, our Shadow Pokemon? They are much more powerful than normal Pokemon, and they learn stronger moves more quickly! After all, Pokemon are nothing but tools and weapons for us humans to use, right?"

Jakov wanted to say he disagreed with that crazy notion, and that he never considered his Noctowl, his Slowking, his Slaking, and the rest of his team as slaves... but he saw that Cezar still had a few darts, and Jakov didn't want to push his luck. So, he swallowed his answer and gulped, before answering in a peaceful tone. "Sure... you're right, Cezar..." he said grudgingly.

Cezar smiled scarily as he put his darts away, and turned to his Xatu, standing on his desk like some sort of eerie totem, waiting for his master's orders. "That's better." Cezar said with a smirk. "You should take lessons from Demitri... he might be young, but he doesn't have all of your foolish 'standards'! And he's already caught two of Hoenn's best coordinators, I might add! May and Harley will soon join Team Vicious, and with them at our side, our power will surely increase a lot!"

"What? He captured... May and Harley?" Jakov asked. "I knew nothing of this..."

"That's obvious, since you were still busy grumbling over the fact that the runner-up at the Sinnoh Grand Festival kicked your butt!" Cezar teased him nastily. "That's why I say you should learn from Demitri... he sure knows how to be persuasive with our opponents!"

**oooooooooo**

"You are a blundering fool!"

May cringed as Demitri wrathfully from his desk and walked up to her... and before she could understand what was going on, Demitri lashed out and slapped her in the face hard enough to knock her down with a pained yelp! May shook her head and tried to pick herself up, rubbing her bruised cheek... but a kick right in the stomach cut her breath short, and caused her to double over and gasp in pain!

"Not only did you botch the mission and return empty-handed... but you even revealed to him the existence of our organization!" Demitri roared, before grabbing May's hair and forcing her to look at him straight in the eyes. May weakly struggled, but didn't dare struggle against the person who held Max as an hostage. "I was expecting such mistakes from a lowly Team Vicious grunt, not one of our most promising trainers! And now, you useless rugrat, tell me... what am I to do with you, huh? Tell me! Give me one single reason why I shouldn't toss you to a bunch of rabid Houndooms, or toss your little brother in a pool filled with hungry Carvanhas! What about it, huh? Which one will it be?"

"Ugh... don't you dare harm one hair on Max's head! You can pick on me as much as you want... but leave him alone!" May fired back, showing all the spirit she could get away with in such an occasion. She was expecting the little brute to hit her again... but luckily, it didn't happen, and Demitri contented himself with glaring hatefully at her for a few seconds, before relinquishing his hold. May rubbed her bruised cheek once again and slowly stood up, realizing that the hit had only been painful, and not really damaging. "I messed up, okay? But Drew only knows the name of our organization! He has no idea where to look for us, and he doesn't know who's behind it! He has nothing he can use against us, so... I don't think I committed such a bad mistake, right?"

"I think May has a point on that, brother..." Stefan interjected as he entered the room from a side door, trying to calm down his tyrannical brother. May turned to him, silently thanking her good luck for letting him come right at that moment. "Please, Demitri, don't be too hard on her... after all, since Drew has no lead, there is no chance he can get to our HQ, and May didn't leave enough traces behind herself, so... I think we can let it slide, for this once!"

"Shut up, you maggot! Should I want your advice, I'll ask for it!" Demitri roared angrily. Then, he seemed to calm down just a little and cast his fierce glance to May once again, as if pondering what to do with her. Finally, after a few moments of silence, the young Team Vicious executive decided it was pointless to insist. "Hmph... yeah, guess I can let this go, for this once... but be on your guard, you little rugrat, because your next mistake will be your last! Next time you face Drew, I want you to subdue him and deliver him to me on a silver platter! Am I clear about it?"

"Sure, I will..." May answered grudgingly, repressing her desire to punch that monstrous brat in the face. "Next time, I won't be caught off guard... and I won't let Drew escape, that's for sure!"

"Good. Now, if you want to rest your Pokemon and see your brother again, you have some spare time to do that." Demitri answered, contemptuously pointing at the door from which Stefan had walked in. May bowed and walked away as slowly and politely as she possibly could, then disappeared in the corridor.

Demitri sighed as he rubbed his forehead, as if trying to stave off a fierce migraine, then turned to Stefan. "Curse it all... I already have enough problems to think of without that frump messing up her missions... by the way, Stefan, how are things in other places? Do Jakov and Cezar have news for us?"

"Nthing really groundbreaking..." Stefan said, trying to keep as natural as possible, even though he was scared of his brother. "Still... I heard Jakov and Cezar have been ordered to work together to capture Paul, the runner-up to this year's Sinnoh League Tournament. With such a trainer on our side, we will certainly become a lot more powerful!"

"Sure, if that knucklehead can be convinced... a dog who won't take to training is useless to us, and Paul isn't as easy to manipulate as May is." Demitri affirmed. "Still, if those two can manage, all the better for us, I guess. By the way, what about the trainer May did capture? I mean Harley of course..."

Stefan scratched the back of his head in an attempt to buy time. "Well... truth be told, it did take some time before he and his Octillery were thawed out of that Blizzard attack from May's Glaceon... we have kept him in an isolated cell for now, and we have taken his Pokemon away from him, just as a safety measure. And I must say, he's got quite the impressive team, especially his Cacturne and his Octillery."

"Good to know. I like it when a trainer has a varied team, I want our new agents to be able to face whatever challenge they might come across." Demitri concluded, feeling a little calmer now. "Alright, that will do for now. You can go, but keep yourself available, as I might need you anytime. Oh, and check that the new Abra and Ralts specimen have been sent - our leader wants replacement as soon as possible."

"It will be done." Stefan said, saluting before going away, and eaving Demitri with his thoughts.

"_I wish I could do something to help Max and May... but I can't go against my brother's will..._" Stefan thought to himself. "_The most I can do is take some pressure off of them... darn, I really don't like what my brother is trying to do... if he and the rest of Team Vicious were to succeed, the world would fall into chaos..._"

**oooooooooo**

"Max! Max, are you alright? Can you hear me?"

As soon as May had reached the prison block in which her brother was being kept, she had seen him lying down on the dusty mound of hay that served as his bed, intent on catching some shut-eye while he could. He seemed to have just returned from one of Team Vicious' exhausting training sessions, and was now trying to regain some strength. In the cell immediately next to him, May could make out, much to her surprise, the lithe figure of Hilde sitting on the floor, hugging her knees and her head lolling slightly to one side as she slept in a rather unconfortable position. So, Hilde had gotten caught as well... ther really was no getting away from those criminals' evil schemes!

Max slowly opened his eyes, and managed to smile as he saw his older sister standing by the door of his cell! He quickly put his glasses on and stood up, quick to get to his sister, a elieved smile on his face. "May! Sis, how are you doing?" he asked. Even if there wasn't much lighting, he managed to see a bruise under his sister's left eye, and was rather worried about that. "And... and what about that bruise? It's nothing serious, is it?"

"It's okay, Max, nothing sleep won't cure!" May answered, trying not to worry Max, who already had much to be worried about. "What about you and Hilde? Have they treated you... well enough?"

"They didn't hurt us. Not physically, at least." Max answered as he gripped the iron bars. "But they did force us to go through one heck of a training regime, and it seems that they want to make me and Hilde into Team Vicious grunts."

"Yeah, I feared as much..." May nodded slowly. "That's the exact same reason why they wanted me to go out there and capture Harley, Drew and Solidad..."

May paused to reorganize her speech, but she was unable to go on before a well-known voice interjected, echoing almost comically through the cell block's corridors! "AAAAARGH! So it was YOU! You were that crazy guy who turned me into a living popsicle and brought me here! How dare you do such a thing to meeeee!"

May and Max plugged their own ears with a comical wince of annoyance, while Hilde woke up from her slumbed and rubbed her eyes as she looked around for the source of that annoying noise... just as a couple grunts dragged a familiar purple-haired person in, while at the same time trying to hold him! Not that he could do much, encuffed as he was, but nothing was keeping him from trying!

"You are the one who froze me and my poor Octillery solid! I knew you were a lying, conniving cheater, but this one takes the cake!" Harley whined, only managing to look ridiculous instead of threatening! "Why would you do such a thing to me? What have I done to deserve such hatred? Okay, aside from those harmless pranks I played on you in the competitions... but it was all in good fun! What just went into you to change like that? Oh, cruel fate..."

"Hey, you aren't here to chat amicably!" one of the grunts said as he tried to pull Harley along, with May, Max and Hilde casting some flabbergasted glances at the effeminate purple-haired coordinator! "WE aren't doing you favors just because you just thawed out, wise guy!"

"Argh... Hey, hold on! Hold on a second, I say! Ugh, no more respect from a coordinator as good as I am!" Harley muttered melodramatically as his jailers dragged him away. "Do not think I will forget about this, May! Wait for me to get free, and I'm gonna get you good! Nobody can treat Harley like that! And nobody can doubt my skill as a cook! Just wait and see..."

Max and May sweatdropped as Harley was uncerimoniously dragged away, swearing revenge in such an over-the-top way as to be impossible to take seriously! When things finally calmed down, May placed an hand on her forehead and sighed, nursing the biggest migraine she had ever felt in her whole life! "Man... I guess he's still hung up on that whole deal with the cookies. Though I have to admit he does have a better reason to hate me now..." she commented.

"So? Who was the crazy guy? Someone you know, May?" Hilde asked as she rubbed the sleep off her eyes. May turned to the girl, who greeted her with a nod, without even changing expression. "You sure know some strange people, huh? Even a lunatic who dresses up as a Cacturne..."

"Well..." Despite everything, May managed to chuckle in amusement. "Harley isn't crazy, really! He's just, well... kinda over the top, that's the word I'd use! He's obsessed with defeating me, and sometimes he didn't really play fair, but he's not bad person, after all. Fact is, I was forced to capture him on the orders of that Team Vicious brat..."

May glanced down with Max placing a hand on her shoulder through the cell bars in order to encourage her. "Look, sis... you need to get away from these people and try to find someone that can help you! You can't let them take advantage of you, or soon you won't be able to get out of this business! Don't worry about me, they won't harm me as long as they think I can be a useful bargaining chip!" he stated, hoping he could push his sister to action. Sadly, Max himself knew May couldn't just let things go and leave him when his life was in danger. As much as they quarreled, they cared a lot about each other to let that happen.

"And what am I supposed to do, Max?" she asked, perhaps more strongly than she had intended. "Can you explain that to me, please? Those people follow all of my movement, and that Demitri guy already slapped me around just because I accidentally reveled Team Vicious' existance to Drew! You don't really think I could just waltz out and ask for help, when I know that those people would not hesitate to harm you, do you?"

"But even keeping doing this won't help!" Max retorted. "Just think about what you're doing, you're aiding a bunch of criminals in kidnapping trainers and turning them in slaves for themselves. I agree Harley isn't the nicest person in the world, but even I don't think he deserved what you've done to him!"

"I don't think so myself, for crying out loud! But if the choice is between a person who dislikes me, and whom I barely know... and my own younger brother... well, excuse me for having my priorities!" she answered back. Then, after taking a couple breaths, she calmed down and wiped her forehead. "And believe me... if there actually was a third choice I'd have jumped at it! But I'm cornered, Max... I can't do anything but obey these guys, at least until they've decided what to do with us. I'm sorry, Max, but... we dont have a choice. And now... sorry, but I can't stay any longer. I'll have to get back to my mission... still, I hope I'll be able to see you again soon, and that you can forgive me for what I have to do... Hilde, please, watch over my brother too, okay? As far as you can, make sure nothing happens to him... okay?"

"Al... Alright, May, you have my word about that!" the girl answered with a sigh. Somewhat relieved, May nodded to Max and smiled slightly, before beginning to walk away, leaving the cell block behind herself, and hopefully Harley as well. Max glanced at the form of his older sister walking away, then sighed and looked down... as much as he hated to admit it, May was right: he couldn't ask her to do much, considering where she was. If he wanted to keep May from getting in trouble, he had to do whatever he could to get out of trouble... and possibly get Hilde out of it too!

"Hilde... I'm afraid we're on our own, from this moment on..." the boy commented as he cleaned his glasses. Hilde remained neutral, as she sat on her heels to listen to her friend and rival. "But we'll have to find the right moment to act, or we won't go far..."

"If only there was someone who could help us from outside, we might have a chance..." Hilde answered... and her expression turned to wonder and perplexity as she saw Max suddenly glancing in the distance, as if someone was calling out for him from far away. "Huh? Are... are you alright, Max? What's with you looking in the distance?

Max blinked and shook himself awake, before turning back to his friend. "Er... sorry, Hilde, you're right... I was kinda spacing out there..." he excused himself. "Fact is... for a moment, I thought someone was calling to me... dunno who he was or why he was doing that..."

"Try to keep focused, okay? Or we're going to see our chances of escaping in the distance as well!" Hilde said sarcastically, her hand combing her unruly hair...

**oooooooooo**

At the moment, Stefan was busy checking on the Pokemon that had recently been captured by the Team Vicious grunts... among them, a considerablenumber of Abra and Ralts, all Pokemon known for using the Teleport move. It was a bunch of Pokemonthat had been captured in response to a suddenly increased demand for teleporting Pokemon from the Team Vicious higher-ups... but Stefan didn't eally know what they were doing with all those Pokemon. It was clearly something more than just selling them to the highest bidder...

"Alright... check that their psychic powes are inhibited, and send them to the boss." Stefan dejectedly ordered. "But make sure that the cages you'll load them in have sufficient exchange of air with the outside. We don't want such precious Pokemon to die on us before they are delivered, right?"

"Of course not, Mr. Stefan! We'll do our best to hand them over intact!" a grunt answered as she gathered a few wooden cages in which several specimen of the small Psychic-types had been locked in. For a moment, one of the Ralts seemed to be jolted awake for a split second, raising his head and looking in the distance, towards something only he could see... It was as if something familiar had brushed past him, and the cute Psychic-type was sure he had felt that somewhere before... it was a pleasant feeling, to be sure, and he was sure he'd be happy to know who was it that caused him to feel like that... and in that moment of emotion, he felt as if he had lost control of his psychic powers for a split second...

Still, that split second in which he had felt that familiar presence was more than enough for Ralts to convince himself that it was worth it to keep fighting...

**oooooooooo**

Standing in front of a videophone, inside of a large Pokemon Center, Drew was patiently waiting for the person he was looking for to answer his call. It had been lucky to have been able to track her, considering she was often travelling all over Hoenn, or even in other continents... and in fact, no one would expect a high-level coordinator such as her to stay in one place for long. It had been some time since he had spoken to her at length, but he was glad, in his own way, that a chance to meet her again had presented itself...

The phone rang... twice... three times... finally, after the fourth ring, the smiling face of a Nurse Joy appeared on the screen to answer. "Hello? This is Ever Grande Pokemon Center. How may I be of assistance to you?"

"Hello, Nurse Joy." Drew answered with a small nod. "May I speak to Miss Solidad, if she's present? I heard she came to your town, recently..."

"Solidad? You mean, the winner of the Hoenn Grand Festival of two years ago? That won't be a problem... in fact, she's right here at the moment." Joy answered as she glanced to another figure who was approaching the counter. "Please, wait in line for a moment, I'm going to check whether Ms. Solidad is available."

"Thanks, I appreciate it." Drew answered, patiently waiting as the videophone's screen filled with static. However, it didn't last more than half a minute before somone else appeared upon it, continuing the conversation: she was a tall and attractive girl of about nineteen, with long rose-colored hair, bright green eyes and the casual look of someone who loved living outdoors - Solidad, an old friend of Drew (and, coincidentally, an old friend of Brock who was born in Pewter City as well) and winner of the Hoenn Grand Festival of two years before, brightened up as she recognized the green-haired boy, who winked at her and waved. "Hey, Solidad! How are you doing?"

"Hey, Drew! Long time no see!" the older girl greeted him. "I was just taking a look here at Ever Grande, to see if there were news worth mentioning, and it seems that some leagues have something big in the works! But please, tell me about you! You seem to be doing well!"

"That's exactly the case!" Drew answered. "I've been training a lot lately, and I've polished my technique for the next competitions! That goes for you as well, I guess!"

Solidad chuckled gently. "Hehehee... that goes without saying, I'm certainly not going to make things easy on you, May and Harley!" she answered, before her expression turned grim. "And by the way, I heard what happened to Harley lately... Haven't they found anything about his disappearence?"

Drew frowned and shook his head. "Sadly, nothing yet... the police is still fumbling in the dark... and in fact, that's the reason why I wanted to speak to you." he answered. Slightly puzzled, Solidad nodded for him to go on, and Drew cleared his voice as he prepared himself for what was going to be a difficult thing to say. "Tell me, Solidad... have you ever heard of Team Vicious?"

The rose haired girl wrinkled her nose as she tried to remember... but even by searching in her memory, she couldn't remember anything like that name. "Hmm... nope, can't say I have..." she answered. "Still, judging from the name, it sounds like one of those criminal teams that pop up from time to time... all imitating Kanto's Team Rocket. What's going on, do you have trouble with this Team Vicious?"

"Not me... I think May is." Drew stated. Solidad frowned as the green-haired boy went on. "Just a few hours ago, I was attacked by a Team Vicious agent that was using Pokemon I found all too familiar... a Blaziken and a Beautifly, if you catch my meaning..."

"I do catch your meaning. They are both Pokemon in May's team!" Solidad said, quickly understanding what her younger friend was trying to say. "So, let me get this straight... you are telling me that this Team Vicious is forcing May to fight alongside them and against you?"

"That's exactly my opinion." was Drew's answer. "When I discovered her true identity, which in fact I was suspecting for quite a while, May tried to make me believe that she had joined those people of her own free will... heh, I've heard better lies. I'm sure they're threatening her somehow. My guess is that they have Max or someone else she cares about taken hostage, and May has no choice but to obey them."

"Yeah, that makes sense. I have my doubts too that May would ever join a criminal team." Solidad concluded. "I think I can guess the rest. You would like us to meet in order to tackle this problem together, find out why May is being forced to serve these guys, and get her and her friends out of hot water. Am I right?"

"Yeah, you hit the proverbial nail on the head, Solidad." Drew answered, praising his friend's quick thinking to himself. Surely, with a trainer such as Solidad on his side, defeating Team Vicious sounded like a much more feasible endeavor... but still, they had to find out where those criminals were located, since they had no idea where to look. Well, bridges should be crossed when one comes to them, Drew concluded. For now, having found Solidad and having told her what was going on was more than enough. "So... if it's possible, I would like to meet with you so we can discuss what todo about May and lend her a hand. What do you say to that?"

"Toorrow is fine with me." the Kanto coordinator answered. "I just need to do a couple chores here at Ever Grande, and then I can get to you. Just to know, where are you now?"

"I'm at Lavaridge Town's Pokemon Center." the green-haired lad answered. "In fact, May attacked me just when I was a few yards away from the town. Okay then... we can meet tomorrow?"

"No problem!" Solidad gave a thumbs-up to him. "As soon as the sun is up, my Pidgeot and I will fly over to Lavaridge Town, and we'll meet to discuss what we should do! I just hope no other problems pile up with this..."

"That will be great! I'm glad to be able to count on you, Solidad, and I'm sorry if I ever bothered you!" Drew answered, glad that things were slowly progressing to a solution. "See you tomorrow, Solidad! Good night, and take care!"

"Same to you, Drew! Don't worry, helping you and May out is no problem for me... we might even find out what happened to Harley!" Solidad said. "You'll see, those Team Vicious scoundrels won't even know what hit them! See you, Drew!"

"See you!" the boy answered with a nod, as the conversation ended and the videophone turned inert. Satisfied, the young green-haired coordinator laid down the phone and sat on one of the Pokemon Center hall's armchairs, waiting for Nurse Joy to heal his Pokemon and give them back to him. He had some free time on his hands... which could be used well by thinking what strategies to use against Team Vicious, as he had no idea what exactly he was up against. This moment would be when all the training he had done with Roserade, Absol and the rest of his Pokemon would be tested and put to good use... the lives of two of his friends, and possibly even more than that, were hanging in the balance!

"Don't worry, May... you won't have to work with those criminals for much longer!" the green-haired youth said to himself. "I don't know how exactly they are forcing you... but there is no problem that has no solution!"

**oooooooooo**

High atop Mt. Silver, another battle was taking place... a powerful Magmortar, at the orders of a purple haired boy with eyes as cold as snow, against a diaphanous Froslass that had attacked them, under the assumption that they would be easy prey to her. Sadly, she had no way of knowing she was up against the runner-up of that year's Sinnoh Grand Tournament... a trainer known for his ruthlessly efficient strategies and for his lack of patience for those he considered weak.

Of course, that Froslass was showing herself to be anything but weak. Despite her disadvantage of being an Ice-type against a Fire-type, the ghost woman had managed to score some good hits on Paul's Magmortar. However, the Fire-type had endured, fueled by his determination to avenge his trainer's defeat in that important competition. Froslass' attacks were losing power, as the magma warrior managed to fend her off with mounting ease. Using a Safeguard move, Magmortar foiled Froslass' Confuse Ray attack, then struck back with a powerful Flamethrower fired from his cannon-arm, which engulfed the snow faerie and left her weakened and staggering. Paul nodded in grim satisfaction, but the half-smile he was beginning to show died down as soon as he saw that the weakned Froslass was using a strange move - her diaphanous body was glowing, and a small ray of light had filtered out of her chest area and linked her to Magmortar's. Strangely, the Fire-type seemed not to take any damage... but Paul was too much of an expert to be caught off guard that way!

"A Destiny Bond attack." he said to himself as he took out a Pokeball. "A last ditch attempt to take down the opponent with her. No problem, I know how to deal with that."

The purple-haired boy tossed his Pokeball, which struck the surprised Froslass before Magmortar could attack again, and sucked her inside, before dropping to the ground and shaking in an attempt to contain the spectral figure. Paul and Magmortar icily glared at the still-moving Pokeball... until it finally stopped, its luminous beacon shutting down. Another Pokemon had joined Paul's team, and the white light from Froslass' Destiny Bond which had surrounded Magmortar faded.

"Well, another Pokemon that might just make for a good addition to my team." Paul commented, satisfied with what he had gotten for now. The purple-haired youth nodded to Magmortar and recalled him in his Pokeball, while at the same time thinking if it was time to call it a day. The sun was already descending beyond the snowy mountain tops, and the temperature was rapidly dropping...

Still, Paul could not shake that strange feeling that someone was closely following him. Ever sine he had met that Cezar guy, Paul had had this strange feeling, and while he wasn't really worried about that, he was starting to believe that the threats he had received weren't empty after all. Of course, as long as he stayed on Mt. Silver, Team Vicious wouldn't have taken the risk, but still...

Paul smiled almost sinisterly at the idea. "Well, if they want to attack me, that at least shows they aren't all talk. They're welcome to try me, if they want. But I'm not going to make things easy on them at all."

Paul eyed the Pokeball he had used to capture Froslass. "They're welcome to attack me, if they want. It will be a good occasion to train Tyranitar, Drapion and Froslass, at least..."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	41. Drew and Solidad

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**I apologize for the long wait, but real life has been a cruel mistress to me... hopefully, I can churn out new chapter faster, after I'm done with a few real life problems. Anyway, this chapter sees some of our favourite characters make a comeback, and you can bet that there will be quite a lot of action as Drew and Solidad decide to take the fight to Team Vicious!**

**Enjoy, and let me know what you think! **

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 39 - Drew and Solidad**

The malicious little creature giggled to herself, slipping from one hideout to the other like a lizard, in the cave she had ran into to escape the victims of her latest pranks. Once again, her tactics had worked to perfection - her cute appearence had thrown everyone off, and she had managed to slip inside a Pokemon Center and use her powers to mess up the machinery for a good twenty minutes. And even in all that chaos, those foolish humans had never even imagined that she might have been the cause of all that... simply for the fact that humans never suspect of someone who is cute and appears friendly. How stupid they were, and how easy it was to deceive them...

Still, the cruel little creature thought with a disgruntled frown, it was all too easy. It gave her no ore satisfaction to deceive those fools, except for a fleeting satisfaction at having shown to be smarter than they were. It was starting to become very boring... if only she had managed to cause greater damage to something or someone, it would have been a lot more fun... but alas, the chance never presented itself. She was not satisfied with the two-bit prnks she was used to play on humans ever since she had first set foot in the outside world... she wanted to do more damage, and make more people suffer...

As she strolled through the galleries, searching for something to amuse herself with, her evil glare stopped upon what looked like apair of huge iron doors, bearing a symbol resembling a mirrored capital R... a gate of sorts, barring access to the caverns beyond and stimulating the evil Pokemon's curiosity. Surely it was the work of humans... which meant it must have been the work of human beings, obviously. Maybe there were quite a few people around there, ready to be played a terrible prank upon... maybe that was her golden opportunity to amuse herself with them.

Giggling again, the malicious imp slowly crept towards the iron doors, already cooking up some dastardly scheme... when a sudden, low noise on her right caused her to hesitate, and to slip back inside her hideout, waiting for the threat to go away.

She was not surprised to see a bunch of men and women, all wearing uniforms belonging to some kind of criminal organization like Team Rocket or Team Galactic. She had never been interested in joining one of those, they were too rigid and incompetent for her own tastes. But this time... this time, things were different... so, as soon as the individuals got close to the iron doors and entered, the evil Pokemon slipped behind them and, convinced nobody could see her, followed them inside a small corridor, trying to think of what sort of terrifying prank she could play on that bunch of fools. Maybe she could burn the main generator with a Flamethrower, or mess up the water supply with a nice Psychic attack. Or maybe use Attract on their male Pokemon and cause them to fight among each other... this all sounded very amusing, and yet, the malicious little Pokemon didn't think it would really have satisfied her. No, she wanted to do something original and more grandiose... a disaster the likes of which she was never able to create as of yet...

"Security, we have an intruder. A Pokemon slipped inside our hideout by following our steps. Proceed and capture."

One of the grunts, speaking in his communicator, caused the little Pokemon to jump up in surprise, widening her cruel little eyes, and she immediately started looking around, searching for a way out. She tried to run the opposite way, and after hiding herself between the rocks, she waited for a few minutes for the sound of steps to ebb away, before slipping away into another corridor, hopefully to a safer haven. She was so frantic in her attempts to escape, that as soon as she emerged on the other side of the passage, she failed to notice a bunch of live wires extending for the whole width of the passage, and inadvertantly touched one.

The effects were immediate, as a powerful electrical shock coursed painfully through the Pokemon's body, enveloping her in a dazzling light! The small creature shrieked in pain before falling to the ground, twitching in shock and feeling her senses leave her already. In the confusion of the moment, she was barely able to make out a tall, grey-haired woman walking up to her, nonchalantly avoiding the trap the small Pokemon had just fallen prey to. The woman stopped in front of the stunned Pokemon and glared at her with sinister interest.

"Hmm... a Togepi, huh?" J said to herself, as she looked at the small Pokemon. Had anyone been close enough to look at her, he or she could have seen the hint of a cruel smile on the woman's lips. "Still... there's something quite different about this Togepi. I've never seen such a grim expression on the face of this kind of Pokemon... this could really be interesting! As they say, every cloud has a silver lining."

"_To... ge... pi..._" the evil Togepi chirped, struggling to stand up. But the electrical shock had completely stunned her, and she couldn't even move one of her short arms to stand up or use one of her attacks. She could only lie there as her sight faded, while J called for a few Team Vicious grunts.

"Men... take this Pokemon and bring it to the labs." J ordered to a bunch of minions. "This particular Togepi looks like it has a lot of potential... it will either fetch us a bundle or be useful to our plans!"

"Yes, Miss J!" the evil Togepi managed to hear, before fainting...

**oooooooooo**

"Okay, guys, this is it! Piplup, use your Aqua Jet... and you, Mamoswine, intercept it with Ice Fang! Go!"

Piplup, Buneary, Ambipom, Mamoswine, Togekiss and Pachirisu, scattered in the courtyard of Quest Island's main hospital, were giving their all during that training session, with Dawn cheering on them and giving instructions with energy and confidence. Obeying his trainer's order, the penguin Pokemon shot out an high-speed stream of water, which travelled across the ground... and as soon as the water blast was close to Mamoswine, the mammoth boar swung his oversized ice-encrusted fangs in an arc in front of himself, intercepting the attack when it was only a couple inches away from him! The water immediately froze, taking the shape of a pretty ice sculpture in the shape of a soaring bird that flew for a while, kept aloft by the Aqua Jet's sheer speed... and then fell to the ground and shattered.

"Ugh... ooookay, that was hardly my best idea..." Dawn commented to herself, while a sweatdrop poured down her head. Even Piplup seemed to agree, seeing how he was rubbing his head with one of his wings. "Alright, guys, just forget about this one, I'll have to think of another trick. Man, I'm kinda short on ideas, lately... and I have all the time I want to think about them, too..."

Buneary got close to her trainer and looked at her in sympathy. Dawn had spent the last threedays stuck in bed, and this was the first time she had been allowed to get out, using a wheelchair to move around. Luckily, the blue-haired pre-teen had no problem admitting that she would have taken her time to heal and have her leg casts removed, and she wasn't too much in a hurry. But it still didn't change the fact that being stuck in a wheelchair and needing to be helped in so many everyday activities might have been vexing to her.

Misty, standing close to her Sinnoh friend and watching her training with the utmost attention, tried to be supportive. "Well... don't feel down about that, Dawn. I do have some experience with setting up a Pokemon show, and I can tell you that it isn't exactly the easiest thing in this world. If only you knew how much my sisters have been pestering me with all their reccomandations and 'useful' tips..."

Dawn giggled in amusement as she picked up her Buneary and her Pokemon gathered around her. "The more I hear you talk about them, the more I look forward to knowing them!" she affirmed. "They sound pretty cool... and they might give me a few pointers for my next competition too!"

Misty winced and made a comically disgusted face. "Ugh... no, Dawn, you really don't want that!" she said with a short laugh. "Hehee... those busybodies would just give you one of their foolish tips... but speaking of competitions, there's something I just thought of now. That rival of yours, Ursula... aren't you afraid she might be spying on you as you train your Pokemon? She doesn't seem like the kind of person who would be above that."

"Well... I think she would do that too, Misty. With all due respect for Ursula, she did once try to take advantage of my fear of Plusle and Minun in order to defeat me in a competition. Yeah, she's the kind of person who would make use of tricks to get her way." Dawn admitted. "But... no need to worry, I already thought of that! As long as we're here, she won't have a chance to spy on me!"

Misty blinked in confusion as her friend winked and clapped her hands in order to recall her Pokemon. "Okay, guys, we'll try out something different... for the next contest, we're going to blow everyone out of the water!" the blue-haired girl exclaimed, as her Pokemon were getting ready for another go.

**oooooooooo**

Ursula rubbed her forehead in annoyance as her Pokemon, her Gabite first and foremost, placed themselves orderly before her, waiting for the training session to begin. That wasn't exactly the placewhere the rich heiress was hoping to begin training: she and her Pokemon were now in the hospital's opposite wing, in a small square surrounded by lush pine trees... and above all, far away from the place Dawn was training at, which meant she wasn't going to have any chance to spy on her rival and get ready for what she was preparing for the next competition. And all thanks to a certain trainer that had volunteered to keep an eye out on her...

"Look..." Ursula grumbled, staring at Gary and his Blastoise, who were standing guard on the other side of the square, smiling in self-assurement. "Is it really necessary for you to stand guard over me? You're not exactly helping me concentrate on my training!"

"Nor on Dawn's training, for that matter." the young Pallet Town researcher answered ironically. "Sorry, but we aren't exactly trusting you. Let's just say we're here as a security measure, just in case you decide to play dirty. Nothing personal, okay? It's just because you can never be too careful. Don't worry, I'm not going to tell Dawn anything about your training either. Just pretend we aren't even here."

Ursula shook her head in resignation, muttering something to herself. So much for a chance to spy on Dawn, that would have been her best chance to do so. Oh well, she had no need for such tricks to get the upper hand on Dawn anyway! She was Ursula, for crying out loud... and she *was* going to show that ditz who the best coordinator in Sinnoh was!

"Alright then..." she finally said, her eyes lighting up in determination. "If that is the case, I'll show you just what my Pokemon and I can do! Vaporeon, Flareon! You're first up... come on, guys, we have to give it all we've got if we are to win the next battle!"

Both Eevee evolution cried out their names in assent and placed themselves in front of their trainer, side by side, as Ursula began trying to think of a combination she had never attempted in the past. There were quite a few ideas running through her head, but none of them was particularly brilliant or original. For now, the best thing would probably be to concentrate on improving her Pokemon's speed and teamwork...

**oooooooooo**

Not too far away from there, Ash and Brock were giving their own teams a good look... and Brock, in particular, had finally managed to know something more on the strange move that his Gible had used in more than one occasion. The small dragon was happily pacing about, picking up fruit from some small trees and eating them without a care in the world, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Ash and Brock were talking about him to Lance.

"Seeing that Pokemon use that move surprised me quite a bit..." the dragon tamer admitted, casting a glance at the seemingly oblivious Gible. "It's a move I have only seen used by very powerful or promising Dragon-type Pokemon... it's called Draco Meteor, and it's really powerful, but the user tires out very quickly when it uses that."

"Well, we kinda saw that... when we were trapped in that cave, Gible used that move, and helped us clear the way." Ash commented as he nursed his casted arm. "So... what do you think, Brock? I think you can be proud of your Gible, this means he's a first-class specimen! I just wish I had captured him myself... hehehee... huh? Hey, Pikachu, where are you going?"

"_Pika pika!_" the electric mouse turned to his trainer, pointing to the wandering landshark.. He probably wanted to keep the small Pokemon out of trouble by keeping an eye out for him.

"Hmm... okay, just don't get too far away from here!" Brock answered, and when Pikachu gave him a thumbs-up with his small left hand, the young aspirant breeder nodded and turned back to Lance, curious to know something more. "So, Mr. Lance... you think this particular Gible is particularly talented, compared to others of his species? But... what is it that determines whether a Dragon-type Pokemon can learn this move, and how could Gible learn such a powerful move if he grew up in the wild? At least that I know of..."

"I'm not sure about it... The Pokemon's happiness is surely an important factor in it, but it's not the only one. As for what concerns the way he learned it... even here, there isn't really an answer I can give." Lance answered. "There still are a lot of things we don't understand about Dragon-type Pokemon, and I can't say that I know everything about them myself. As you can plainly see, they are a very mysterious kind of Pokemon..."

"Of course..." Ash answered, thinking it was bad luck on his part that he never had a chance to catch a Pokemon of that type. Maybe he should have thought of doing that, one of these days... maybe a Dratini or something like that. "Well, speaking of something else, Mr. Lance... what are you going to do now? One of the gems is in our hands, but Team Rocket has the other two, and we have no idea what they want to do with those..."

Lance tried to assuage the young trainer. "Don't worry about that, Ash... as long as the Sapphire is in the Kanto League HQ, nobody will be able to get close to it without authorization." the Kanto and Johto champion answered. "As for the rest, well... rest assured that we'll do everything in our power to keep those criminals under a close watch and make sure they won't be able to harm anyone. Lorelei and I will be discussing things tomorrow already, as soon as we're back to HQ... and Miyu and Homura will be with us as well."

"Thanks, Mr. Lance, we'll be counting on you as well." Brock answered. "For what concerns us... as soon as Dawn can get out of the hospital, we'll return to Pallet Town and see what's the best thing to do. I'm afraid Team Vicious and Team Rocket have us in their sights now, and they won't let up until they've gotten rid of us somehow. I think that, as soon as we've recovered a little, the best thing to do is to go back to our journey and return to other places we've already been to. I think even the Legendary Pokemon living there might be in danger."

Lance nodded seriously. "Yes, I think that would be wise to do. Alright, since Johto is my responsability as well, I'll try to take care of susppect movements in that region too... but I hope there will be no problems for a while. I dare hope those criminals need to reorganize themselves, after such a large-scale operation. So... yeah, I guess you will have some time to get some rest."

"Alright... thanks for your concern, Lance! We'll make sure to put our time to good use!" Ash answered, looking at Pikachu and Gible, who were playing around in the proximities. The electric mouse was helping the landshark reach an apple hanging from an high branch, climbing up the trunk and using his forepaws to knock the delicious fruit off the tree. Smiling from one ear to the other, the dragon picked up the apple, then waited for Pikachu to get down, split the apple in two parts, and gave one to Pikachu, who accepted gratefully.

"_Pika pikachu!_" the electric mouse answered gratefully, understanding that it was a very significant gesture from the ravenous little dragon.

"_Gible!_" the little dragon answered, as Ash, Brock and Lance looked at him from a distance, smiling at the funny scene.

**oooooooooo**

Drew and his Roserade took a quick look at the green-haired boy's wristwatch, seeing that it was almost 3 o' clock in the afternoon. If he knew Solidad as well as he thought, she wouldn't take much longer to show up, and she's probably even be a few minutes early. She had always been a very accurate person, especially when it came to being on time.

In fact, the green-haired coordinator didn't have to wait much longer. His Roserade looked up, as if saying that he was expecting that to happen... and then, a gust of wind shook the treetops, and Drew looked up as well to see a large, majestic Pidgeot sweeping down upon the cleaaring, using his large wings as a parachute, fallen leaves and clouds of dust being kicked up as he descended. Drew smiled to himself and shifted just enough to avoid being blown off his feet by the wind, waiting for the Flying-type to land, and for the pretty rose-haired girl on his back to raise her glance and greet him.

"Hey, Drew!" Solidad greeted, calmly combing her hair in place. "Good to see you again! I tried to get here as quickly as I could... hope I'm on time!"

"Bang on time, Solidad! Just as you use to be!" Drew answered as his friend from Kanto dismounted from her Pidgeot. Solidad affectionately scratched Pidgeot's head before recalling him in his Pokeball and hugging her young green-haired friend. "And it's great to see you again after so much time!"

"Same goes for me, Drew, really!" the young girl answered, detaching from Drew and clearing her throat. Sadly, those happy moments would have to wait for now... they had met to face a threat that was looming over their common friend, and other people as well. "Although, I wish we could meet again in better circumstances... as you told me by phone, May seems to be in a bit of a pinch."

"That's what I think." the boy answered, while his Roserade bowed to Solidad like a perfect gentleman. "As I said... I think that those who are manipulating her are holding Max hostage. That's the only reason I can think of for her behaviour."

"Me too." Solidad answered seriously. "But there's a problem about that. Do you have any idea where to start looking for the people who took Max and May? Or do you think they'll be the ones to come for us?"

Drew nodded slowly. "I already have half an idea how these criminal teams operate..." he stated. "I think they are actually looking for me and want to capture me, probably to force me to work for them. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I think that this is the reason why they sent May against me. She knows me better than any other member of the organization."

"Yes, I can imagine that..." Solidad nodded, understanding her younger friend's reasoning. "Which not only means that I could be a target as well, but that those scoundrels have probably kept their eyes on us for a long time now. I'm afraid we are dealing with dangerous people here."

"That's why I decided to ask for your help." Drew admitted. "And just to top it off, even Harley recently disappeared, and I'm willing to bet my shoestrings that it was May who captured him and delivered him to those people. We have to act with extreme caution."

Solidad nodded again as the two of them began walking towards the nearest city. "Of course. If that is the case, the best thing we can do right now is prepare a trap for those criminals." she said, analyzing the situation in her own way. The young Pewter City resident had shown herself to be quite adept at analyzing the situation and coming up with countermeasures on the fly during her contest against Drew and May, and she was doing the very same thing here. "They surely won't attack if they see we're together. We need to bait them somehow... one of us walking on his or her own should do... and as soon as they show up again, or rather, as soon as May shows up again... the other will pop up and take our opponents off guard. Hopefully, that should allow us to discover more about all of this."

"And at best, we will also be able to rescue May and Max." Drew stated, ignoring his roserade's knowing gaze. "Sounds simple yet effective to me, but we have to pick the right moment."

"That's true..." Solidad affirmed... before smiling cunningly to her friend. "Hey, Drew, is it just me, or you're kinda worried about our... friend? You're good at hiding what you truly feel, but I like to think I know you well enough to see through a facade... am I right?"

Caught off guard by the elegant Pewter City coordinator, Drew was unable to "strike a pose" and widened his eyes in surprise for a second, but he was soon back to his previous tranquil, aloof expression. "Ah-ehm... Solidad, you are a smart girl and all, but I'm afraid you're looking too much into it." he answered, knowing what his friend was referring to. "I'm simply concerned over a friend and a worth opponent, that's all there is to it."

"Okay, I won't inquire further!" Solidad answered with a short laugh. However, she soon turned serious again, knowing that this was no joking matter at all. "Alright... I guess we can save the jokes for later, we have to think of a plan right now."

This time, it was Drew who first got an idea. "As you just said, we need to entice those people into attacking us again." he commented. "So, I could be the bait. They'll probably send May to attack me again, and that will be our best chance to confront her and have her explain what's going on. We just need to pick a rather isolated place."

"I think I already have half an idea." Solidad said with a wink. "Okay, I think that will be a great idea. We just need to organize our Pokemon teams and get ready for battle."

Drew nodded, as the two friends continued to walk towards the horizon, determined to save their friend. They were far away from thinking that they were getting involved in something really big...

**oooooooooo**

May grit her teeth and sighed grimly, as Demitri slowly paced in front of his desk, with Stefan and a couple of grunts close behind as witnesses to the silent glaring contest. It was time for May to redeem herself of her previous failure and to force Drew to follow her the Team Vicious HQ. This time, she couldn't afford any failure. She doubted the young criminal would have taken kindly to that...

But for the moment, all she could do was wait, and hope Demitri was going to be understanding enough to grant her a second chance. For his part, even Stefan was hoping his brother was going to be reasonable and overlook that incident, especially since it wasn't May's fault at all...

The disquieting silence lasted a few seconds more, only interrupted by Demitri's dull, rhytmic pacing. Finally, as soon as May was beginning not to be able to handle it anymore, Demitri stopped in front of his desk, cleared his throat and began speaking.

"Considering your previous failure was due to circumstances unrelated to you... and considering the damage has been minimal... I'm willing to grant you a second chance to capture Drew." Demitri began. "But let it be clear that I won't be as generous next time. Fail this time, and you will never see your dear little brother again. Don't assume Max is indispensable to us, we can always find another trainer."

May frowned angrily, but wisely chose to swallow whatever she might have wanted to say. For now, she had to concentrate on completing her mission. "Yes... yes, sir, I understand. Rest assured I will not fail." she said, her voice faltering ever so slightly. "I will locate Drew and bring him to you, by any means necessary. You can be sure of that."

Demitri frowned and nodded slowly. "Good. That's what I hope for your little brother's sake. Now go, and bring Drew here." he ordered, to which May bowed - albet reluctantly - and began walking away, leaving Demitri, Stefan and their guards alone in the office. The young Team Vicious executive turned to his desk and looked at a few documents lying forgotten upon it.

"Brother..." Stefan began uncertainly. Demitri raised his glance from the papers, clearly annoyed at having been interrupted, and glared fiercely at his brother, as if telling him to make haste. "Do... do you really think May can accomplish this mission? Don't you... erm... think there might be problems?"

Demitri grunted in annoyance. "And why, pray tell, should there be any?" he harshly asked. "May defeated Drew in their last battle, during the Grand Festival. I don't see why she shouldn't be able to do it now."

Stefan thought that his brother was forgetting that coordinator contests and real Pokemon battles were somewhat different, but Demitri didn't seem to be in the mood for discussing, so Stefan decided to drop the issue and proceed with the previous question. "Well... it wasn't exactly a technical question, brother. I know May can defeat Drew, and she can do it again now... I had another question, actually. I think May sees the target as a very close friend, if not more. This could be a problem, don't you agree? She was able to fight Harley because Harley and her have never been on friendly terms, and she might not be that efficient when facing a person close to her. At least... er... that's what I think."

"Well, she'll have to deal with it, if she wants to see her brother again." Demitri cut the discussion short. "And you too... enough of this! I don't like wasting my time."

Stefan wisely chose to shut up, not wishing to rouse his brother's ire... but within himself, he could feel his anger and frustration at his brother's mistreatment mounting ever more. In spite of the fact that Stefan was doing everything he could to help Demitri realize his ambitions, Demitri always treated him like dirt and felt entitled to pick on him whenever something was wrong. It wasn't fair... and Stefan felt that this had to end soon...

**oooooooooo**

"Darn... what a drag, we've bee in these stinky little cells for hours now, and nobody came to tell us anything..." an annoyed Hilde grumbled, pacing back and forth in her own cell, while Max sat on the floor in an ill manner, sulking and looked despondently outside. The girl, who didn't share her rival's patience, approached the door of her cell and kicked it harshly. "Darn it all! They seem to have completely forgotten about us! What are those scoundrels thinking, huh? I'd like to know that!"

"Kicking doors isn't exactly the best way to get answer, Hilde..." Max answered sarcastically, not even moving from his position. Sadly, the deadpan delivery didn't do much to improve the girl's foul mood, and she turned to Max with a dark scowl on her pretty face.

"So, wise guy, what do you propose we do?" she asked angrily. "In case you haven't noticed, we're stuck here in these stinky cells, and we can't do anything! And as if this wasn't enough, those guys seem to have completely forgotten about us... what exactly do you think we can do?"

"I don't know, but losing our cool won't help." Max answered, raising his glance a little and staring back at his companion. "For now, all we can do is wait and hope things can turn out well."

Hilde sighed in annoyance, but she had to reluctantly concede that her friend was right. Staying there and lamenting the whole deal would not have done any good... she had to keep her cool and wait, even though there were few motives to think it was going to end well at all, between May being forced to work for Team Vicious, and other high-level trainers and coordinators having ended up in the evil syndacate's clutches. With a resigned shake of her head, the girl sat on the ground again, hoping against hope that her friend was right.

Silence fell between the two cells, and the surroundings became deathly calm, without a single grunt getting close, not even to assess their condition or give them a bite to eat. Max was beginning to think things were taking a turn for the bizzarre... wasn't Team Vicious worried about the fact that some prisoners might have tried to escape? What were they thinking?

A sudden jolt, like an electrical discharge directly in his brain, shook the young boy from his reflections, and Max widened his eyes and sat up from his place as if he had been stung by a Beedrill, widening his eyes in surprise and wonder. It was a hard sensation to describe... it was like a sudden, brilliant pain that had shaken him up, but it wasn't actually unpleasant... it was strange, yet conforting at the same time, and it did feel somewhat familiar to the young boy. Who knew what that could be... Max had a few ideas already, but he didn't dare get too optimistic, for fear of being disappointed...

"Hey, Max, you okay?" Hilde asked, getting as close as she could with the bars standing between her and Max. "What's the matter? You seemed to be freaking out there..."

"I'm... I'm okay, Hilde, really!" Max answered. "I just... had a strange feeling, that's all..."

**oooooooooo**

"Hmph... alright, let's go take a look at these Pokemon... I sure always get the most annoying jobs. I'm beginning to get fed up with this..." Stefan lamented as he walked to the underground levels to check on the Pokemon Team Vicious had captured earlier during those busy days. Demitri would not have accepted any Pokemon in less than optimal physical shape - they wouldn't have been useful as batteries for teleporting J's flying fortress, or at least that's the justification he had been given. Sure, the idea that Team Vicious was using actual Pokemon for powering up their weapons was cringe-worthy... and the fact that they needed substitutions from time to time did not bide well for the fate of those same Pokemon... and yet, what could he do? As long as his brother was at the head of that section of Team Viciou, his orders were the law, and he could not oppose them...

With an heavy heart, the young man descended the stairs and went to the underground shelter, looking around himself to check whether everything was in place. On both sides of that sort of corridor, stood numerous cages that seemed to have been created with an unknown technology: they were dome-shaped, like huge bird cages, and a small device the size of a cigarette package was standing on top of them, a red light turning on and off rhytmically on its surface, and emitting a semitransparent forcefield all around the cage. There was a small Pokemon, usually an Abra or a Ralts, but in any case a Pokemon that could learn Teleport, in every cage, and Stefan quickly understood that the mysterious forcefield actually served to inhibit the Pokemon's psychic powers and keep them from teleporting their way out or using telekinesis to free themselves.

Apathetically, Stefan began checking the cages, without seeing anything suspect. All Pokemon were either asleep or too stunned to do anything, and none of them seemed to be able to use its powers to free itself. Thinking that stayingthere any longer would have been a waste of time, Stefan was about to turn around and walk away, when a strange feeling caused him to stop in his tracks - not a sound, nor anything he might have caught a glimpse of, it was just a strange feeling that had popped up all of a sudden...

The young man looked around, trying to understand which cage that strange feeling was coming from, and his eyes fell upon a particular dome, containing a stunned Ralts that was surrounded by a faintly visible azure aura, managing to stand out among the dull colors of the forcefield surrounding the cage. For some reason, Stefan was feeling like that Ralts was trying to tell him something...

Almost instinctively, Atefan reached for the cage, and immediately stopped himself, realizing what he was ddoing. Had the security cameras seen what he was about to do, Demitri would never have forgiven him... so, after gulping some saliva, Stefan tried to walk away from the cage. But the Ralts standing inside of it stopped him again, this time by sending a message directly to his mind and speaking telepathically to him!

"_Help me..._"

Stefam blinked in curiosity and incredulity, looking at the Ralts as if asking him what he could do to help him. The small Psychic type managed to feel his confusion, and sent another telepathic message to help him.

"_Max... here... free... him..._"

"W-what?" the young man asked. "You... you are asking me... a Team Vicious member... to help you? Do... do you have any idea of what would happen if I did help you? It would be all over for me... there would be no place for me in this organization anymore... and neither anywhere else!"

"_I know... who can... help you... no more... energy..._"

Ralts was having trouble keeping up the mind link, because of the forcecage dampening his psychic powers, and in fact, a few seconds later, the aura flaring weakly around him faded, and the small Pokemon stood inert in his prison, unable to move a muscle. Still shocked from the unexpected development, Stefan tried to think of a way to weasel out of the whole deal, and to avoid getting himself in trouble with his unforgiving brother...

Unfortunately for him, the telepathic call for help had already taken effect, and it was managing to completely undo his already shaking resolve. Could he really afford to ignore Team Vicious' cruelty, despite knowing all too well what they were doing? Could he really let two children be taken hostage and May be forced to work for them? His conscience would just not keep quiet about it... and now that he had a chance to do something about it, was he going to turn away and pretend nothing had happened?

But the question was... could he really do anything without getting caught? The surveillance cameras were still active... but maybe, if he picked the right moment, he could have deactivated them and slip in unnoticed...

Maybe it was worth a try. At that point, Stefan had had enough of ignoring his own conscience and do whatever his brother wanted. He just had to help that Ralts, all those Pokemon, and possibly Max and May as well. It was a crazy idea, but maybe it could work...

"Alright then..." he whispered to himself. "I can't do anything for now, little Ralts... but rest assured that, as soon as I am able to, I'll be back and I'll make sure you and the other Pokemon can get out of this mess. I give you my word."

**oooooooooo**

Damien was both exhausted and terribly annoyed when he finally set foot once again in Team Vicious' HQ... ever since J had pretty much left him on Mt. Ember after that botched attempt to capture Moltres, the hapless Team Vicious grunt had been forced to return to base with his own means, and it had been quite a long and diffcult road. As if this wasn't enough, he had surely lost his boss' respect after that humiliation... and judging from the condescending, mocking glances he was receiving as he walked through the HQ's corridors, he had lost his colleagues' as well. It was an unbearable shame for someone with such a huge ego to be looked down upon and pitied...

Trying not to care about the mocking stares he was getting ,the young grunt walked to the innermost parts of the HQ, crossing hollow rooms and corridors, until he got to a closed door that seemed to be controlled by some kind of visual identification device. Sighing and mentally preparing himself to the huge headache he was about to get from both his boss and Hunter J, Damien placed himself in front of the door, keeping his eyes open, and a small red light shone into his eyes, performing some sort of retinal scan. A second later, the door opened with a low whirling sound, allowing Damien to access a darkened control room, in which the Iron Masked Marauder and J, along with a sizeable number of grunts, who seemed to only be waiting for him. Ready for the tongue lashing, Damien stepped into the room and bowed to his boss, who coldly stared at him, scratching his goatee.

"Sir... Miss J... I'm... er... I'm back.! And... I apologize for not having shown up before. I... tried to arrive as quickly as possible..." he said, trying not to show fear, even thoug he found it rather difficult considering the situation he was in. "I will... accept any punishment you deem fit for my incompetence."

The Iron Masked Marauder did not answer immediately, limiting himself to glaring at Damien. J herself declined to comment, and not even the grunts present said or did anything, which actually managed to unnerve Damien all the more, at least until the Marauder spoke up.

"Stand up, Damien." he harshly said, much to the youth's surprise. "There is no need for you to excuse yourself. Rather, there is something we would be glad to give you... something I'm sure you will appreciate..." he ended his sentence with a grin that both confused and terrified Damien. The youth was that far from imagining that, instead of a punishment, he would be given a reward from his leader...

"A... reward?" Damien asked. "What... what's this all about?"

Leaving her usual stoicism aside, J chuckled grimly. "Hehehee... don't worry, there's no trick. You have nothing to fear." she affirmed. "Despite your... unsatisfying performance during the fight in Knot Island, we think you have shown great potential, It is only a matter of giving you the right Pokemon, and we have captured one just today! Take a good look at it."

Two grunts stepped forward, carrying a small cage inside of which a female Togepi with a mean expression on her face was thrashing and turning, in an attempt to free herself. She was emitting shrill, ear-piercing cries of rage... and despite his initial incredulity and disappointment - he would never have thought a Togepi could actually be a useful Pokemon - Damien quickly saw that it wasn't a Togepi like all the others. Aside from her cruel expression, she actually looked far stronger and more dangerous than your average Togepi.

The Iron Masked Marauder smirked as he saw Damien's confused expression. "Hehehee... I know, a Togepi isn't exactly what you'd call a powerful Pokemon... but believe me when I say that this one is very different from the others. This s ctually a fierce and cruel Pokemon, that will surely enjoy her chance to stay with a trainer that will allow her to hurt someone! And I'm sure that, thanks to her, you will be able to get your revenge against Ash Ketchum and that bunch of losers! So, Damien, what do you say? This will be the first in a long list of powerful Pokemon that will allow you to become the most feared trainer in our organization! Of course, provided you can actually raise her to a nice Togekiss..."

"_Briiii! Briiiii!_" the evil Togepi squeaked, thrashing in her cage like an angry snake. Damien went closer, drawing the small creature's angry stare on himself... and decided that it wouldn't be a bad idea to actually try and train her. If that Togepi was already rather strong as she was, he could only imagine how much stronger she would be as a Togekiss!

Finally, after gathering his thoughts for a few moments, Damien smirked in triumph. "Hehee... alright, sir... I am very grateful for this! I will not fail you this time, you have my word! I'll make sure this Togepi becomes one of our deadliest weapons... and I'll wipe out anyone who opposes us!" he exclaimed, as the evilTogepi stopped thrashing and regarded her new trainer with curiosity.

The Marauder smirked again. It was really that easy to manipulate that fool...

**oooooooooo**

"Fine then... I'll start on my way, and you'll be following me from a safe distance." Drew summed up, to which Solidad nodded in assent. The next morning had come in a snap, and after getting a few hours' sleep in the first Pokemon Center they had come across, Drew and Solidad were on their way to the nearest city. Not that they actually expected to find anything unusual... their only objective was to draw out Team Viciou, especially May, by making them think Drew was on his own... only for Solidad to intervene and turn the situation around, forcing the criminals to spill the beans... and hopefully convincing May to tell us what was actually going on.

"Of course... we'll catch those guys off guard, and we're getting some answers out of them." Solidad answered. "Anyway... well, no need to say it, but still, be careful. Those peple play for keeps, from what I can gather. Good luck, Drew!"

The green-haired boy smiled slightly and nodded as he started on his way. Solidad stood there for several minutes, and as soon as her friend was far enough, she started following in his footsteps, all of her senses alert for a probable new attack from Team Vicious...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	42. Friends To The End

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 40 - Friends To The End**

"Very well... I suppose all we have to do now is wait." Drew murmured to himself, looking around in apparent nonchalance as he walked along the dusty road, following the plan he and Solidad had worked up. "Solidad knows what she's doing, but we'll need to have an excellent timing, and we will take care not to commit any mistake. There are some lives on the line here..."

The green-haired lad grabbed the Pokeball containing his Roserade and smiled ironically as he turned it around in his hand. "Well, Roserade... I guess you'll never let me hear the end of it, once this whole deal is done with. About me and May being sweet on each other, I mean. Even Soledad is completely sold on that. Although, I will admit that May is a great person, and I admire her skills as a coordinator... but this is not the right time to think of this, is it?"

Anyway, it also wasn't the right time to worry, at least for the moment. There was no sign of Team Vicious anywhere. Maybe they were still too close to the town, and the criminals were trying to keep a low profile. That wasn't a problem, though... all he had to do was get some distance away from the city, and look like he was on his own. Up until then, nothing problematic.

Drew look a left, and begn walking through a large clearing filled with knee-high grass and colourful wild flowers, before coming to a fork in the road, both direction looking like they were leading to the middle of nowhere. Without thinking about it too much, Drew took a right and glanced around, his senses keen on picking up even the slightest alarming sound.

Several minutes went by without anything happening, and Drew was starting to think hat Team Vicious had decided to wait before attacking again, so that he may lower his guard... but before he could think about it further, he heard a faint but still clear sound of momoving grass to his right, which caused him to instantly stop and turn to that direction, seeing something moving in the tall grass for just a split second. He couldn't see exactly what was it, but it was reason enough to be warned in his opinion, and Drew immediatelt reached for his Pokeballs.

The surroundings were plunged in silence and stillness once again, aside from the soothing sound of the tall grass getting moved by the wind... but Drew was not one to be fooled by appearences, and get ready by sending out one of his strongest Pokemon: his Roserade, an elegant rose-like humanoid Pokemon with a crown of white petals to act as hair, and an eye mask that made him look mysterious and charming. He had a pair of flowers, one red and one blue, instead of hands, and he seemed to be wearing a bodysuit the color of fresh grass, which made his agile and quick features stand out. The Grass / Poison Pokemon appeared in a swirl of colourful petals and stood on guard.

Drew kept looking around... and a few seconds later, a few puffs of smoke rose from the tall grass surrounding him, and enveloped him in a cloud of pungent-smelling white smoke. The green-haired boy sneezed and tried to wave the smoke away, while a few humanlike figures stood up all around him, and began advancing towards him in a clear gesture of threat. Drew couldn't help but crack a small smile of satisfaction. Apparently, Team Vicious had actually decided to show up after all... and in fact, he could see that a few Pokemon were appearing at the sides of the mysterious men! One of them was a Sudowoodo... then, there was a short, stocky figure covered in spiky fur with leaves for hands - a Shiftry, no doubt about that. His opponents seemed to have come prepared this time, and he would not have been surprised if May was among them...

"Hmm... nice welcome commitee, I have to say." Drew said sarcastically, as his opponents sent out one Pokemon after the other. His Roserade noticed Shiftry hanging back... and then unleashing a Razor Leaf attack on both of them, by throwing a handful of blade-sharp leaves as if they were shuriken! But the rose Pokemon was undaunted, and answered with a Magical Leaf attack, by doing a rapid pirouette and opening his arms, sending out a barrage of lumious leaves that came out of nowhere! The Magical Leaf attack intercepted the Razor Leaves in midair, the two attack cancelling each other out in a shower of green light, while the noxious fog Team Vicious had used as a smokescreen was rapidly being blown away, allowing Drewand Roserade to actually see their attackers. Just like Drew thought, it was a small group of no more than five masked individuals, all of them accompanied by a tough and aggressive-looking Pokemon. Besides Sudowoodo and Shiftry, the green-haired boy saw a Mothim - a large butterfly with multicolored wings, quite similar to a Beautifly - an Houndoom and a Poliwrath.

"Five to one. The odds don't look that good to me, so... allow me to even them out a little!" Drew said, taking out another of his Pokeballs. His Flygon popped out of it, now completely rested and ready for battle... and several of his opponents' Pokemon hung back, realizing they were up against a dangerous foe. The enemy Houndoom stepped up first and opened his jaws, showing an ominous-looking sphere of flames burning between them, and Drew's Flygon flew in front of Roserade to shield him from a potentially dangerous attack, but several enemies took advantage of that instant of distraction to swarm them. The enemy Poliwrath fired an Ice Beam that struck the drake's sinuous tail, causing him to shriek in pain and alarm, while Team Vicious' Sudowoodo tried for a Rock Slide attack, throwing a massive handful of fist-sized stones against his opponents! Roserade pirouetted around and managed to dodge the Rock-type attack, only to find himself within Mothim's firing range!

The giant butterfly fired a Psybeam from his antennae, shooting Roserade with a multicolored beam of psychic energy, but the Grass / Poison type was still able to defend himself by crossing his arms in front of himself and blocking the direct hit, but still taking quite a hit and being forced to the ground. He quickly picked himself up once again and decided it was time to fight back, this time by pointing his flower-hands towards Mothim and Poliwrath.

"Now, Roserade! Use Giga Drain!" Drew exclaimed. The flower-like Pokemon was quick to obey, and after he closed his eyes, a swarm of small orbs of green light was dragged from Mothim and Poliwrath to Roserade's body and was absorbed by the Grass / Poison Pokemon. Mothim seemed to shrug it off without trouble... but the more vulnerable Poliwrath swayed a little and dropped on one knee, before placing both his hands on the floor in sudden fatigue. Roserade, for his part, felt rejuvenated as soon as the orbs of green light were drawn into his body.

Flygon was still dealing with Houndoom and Sudowoodo, while the enemy Shiftry was sneaking around in the tall grass, sniping at Flygon from time to time with a volley of Razor Leaves. The black hound was trying to avoid a direct physical confrontation, his teeth wreathed in red flames as he tried to chomp on Flygon with his Fire Fang attack, while Sudowoodo was using Mimic to copy Houndoom's attacks and use them to the best of his abilities against his opponent. Sadly for them, their opponent was not about to get defeated so easily...

"Alright, I guess playtime is over. Flygon, use Earthquake!" Drew ordered. The Dragon / Ground Pokemon quickly dropped to the ground with all of his weight and strength, shaking the ground with the sheer force of the impact and striking both enemies! Houndoom howled in annoyed surprise before being thrown backwards in a stunned heap, and even the more resistant Sudowoodo had trouble standing such a powerful and relentless assault. Houndoom tried to stand up again, but after a few failed attempts, he gave up and slumped to the floor, panting breathlessly.

"Good job, Flygon!" Drew exclaimed. "And now... let's take out that two-bit ninja. Absol, you're up! You know what to do!"

Drew's elegant Dark-type jumped out of his Pokeball and ran twards the place from where Shiftry had popped up more recently, executing a flawless Aerial Ace attack by swinging his scythe-like extension in a powerful arc, which knocked the Grass / Dark type out of its hiding place and sent him rolling on the ground for a fair distance. Shiftry rolled with the blow somewhat and stood up again, but Drew's Absol jumped out of the grass like a pouncing panther and landed in front of him in a gesture of challenge, his scythelike blade shining sinisterly in the sunlight.

Roserade was still dealing with the enemy Roserade, who quickly swooped down upon him to execute an Air Slash attack. With a well-timed Double Team move, the Grass / Poison rose-like Pokemon caused the giant butterfly to hit one of his after-images... then, before the opponent could turn around and try again, Roserade conjured a boiling orb of sticky purple liquid in his hands...

"And now... Sludge Bomb!" Drew ordered.

Roserade tossed the orb of noxious sludge towards Mothim, hitting him just as the Bug / Flying Pokemon was getting ready for another attack. Mothim screeched loudly and crashed to the ground when the powerful Poison-type attack struck him, splashing the surroundings in foul-smelling slime! The butterfly-like Pokemon managed to pick himself up again and frantically moved his wings as he tried to regain altitude... but his trainer decided his Pokemon had had enough and recalled him before he could get hurt further.

"Well, I'd say we're even now." the green-haired lad commented.

In fact, with Houndoom and Mothim defeated, only three Pokemon were left, each one of them now fighting against one of Drew's Pokemon: Absol was up against Shiftry, Flygon against Sudowoodo, and Roserade against Poliwrath. And the latter one looked rather beat up anyway. The battle was not going to last much longer... and in fact, not wanting to prolong things more than necessary, Roserade sighed and pirouetted around, before Poliwrath could aim another Ice Beam. Roserade's Stun Spore attack, in the guise of a fine golden dust that fell upon Poliwrath, slowing down the gigantic tadpole's movements and forcing him to sit down in exhaustion. Flygon was having just a little more trouble with the more resistant Sudowoodo, and Drew was hesitant to use Dragon Claw or some other Dragon-type attack, as he knew Sudowoodo might have copied it with Mimic and use it against Flygon... so, he decided he might as well use a little cunning to end this battle.

"That's it, Flygon! Now, try using Dig!" the green-haired boy exclaimed. Immediately, the lion-ant Pokemon dropped down and began digging a hole, before rushing towards Sudowoodo like some sort of underground missile... but that seemed to be exactly what Sudowoodo's trainer wanted!

"Heheheee... not very smart now, are you, boy?" the Team Vicious grunt sneered. "You should know that Earthquake can hit even an opponent that is hiding underground... and is actually particularly effective against those! Sudowoodo, use Mimic to imitate Earthquake!"

The stone tree waved his arms in the air... and one split second later, he jumped up to land heavily in the place where Flygon was. However, Drew did not seem worried in the least... rather, his opponent's naivete caused him to smirk arrogantly!

"I'm afraid I will have to contradict you, and to tell you that the joke is on you." Drew said. "Did you forget about Flygon's Levitate ability? Or were those wings not enough of a hint? Now, Flygon!"

The lion-ant Pokemon was just waiting for that. With a sudden lunge, he emerged from the ground, spraying earth and stone all around before taking altitude, avoiding Sudowoodo's Earthquake attack in the nick of time! The heavy Rock-type Pokemon landed just one moment too late to hit Flygon, and the ground, which had been weakened by Flygon's tunneling, collapsed and left the surprised Sudowoodo half-buried in the rubble! Writhing in alarm, Sudowoodo tried getting free, but his frantic attempt to free himself only managed to make him sink further!

"Just like I was hoping." Drew stated. "Let's wrap this up with Dragon Claw, Flygon!"

Flygon swept down and struck Sudowoodo with a powerful swipe of his right claw, which was wrapped in a multicolored aura... and the Rock-type Pokemon, having already been weakened in the previous clashes, could not hold out any more and fainted, still half-buried in the soft ground. Now, all that was left was Absol fighting Shiftry... and just then, the ninja-like Pokemon had managed to slip through Absol's guard and hit him with a super effective Brick Break attack, which caused the white-furred Pokemon to flinch dangerously. Emboldened by that brief advantage, Shiftry smirked and threw a Feint Attack, hitting Absol in the side... but this time, he was unable to get away in time, before Absol grabbed one of Shiftry's thin arms and held him tight.

"This should do it... Absol, use Superpower!" Drew ordered. Absol narrowed his eyes, giving the impression that he was smirking narrowly... then, he leapt up in the air and began spinning around in midair... one, two, three times... as soon as he gained enough momentum, Absol let go and slammed the opponent on the ground!

...

*KA-BOOOOOOM!*

There was a deafening boom and a huge cloud of dust was kicked up in the air as Shiftry hit the ground with incredible speed, and Absol somersaulted through the air and landed nonchalantly, straightening out his fur as he did so. When the dust cleared, Drew could see that even the last enemy Pokemon was laid out on the ground, and the Team Vicious assault squad had nothing more to send against Drew and his Pokemon. However, the young man didn't drop his guard, knowing that it could have been a simple diversive, or an attempt to weaken him before a much tougher battle. With a wave of his arm, Drew recalled Roserade, Absol and Flygon, who stood around him like a bunch of well-trained bodyguards, and glared nastily at the Team Vicious grunts.

"You are the ones who are forcing May to attack those trainers, right?" the young man said severely. "What are you planning? I'd guess you wanted to force me into joining your little party as well..."

None of the five grunts replied as they recalled their defeated Pokemon... but just thwn, another masked figure, smaller than the others andwith a decidedly feminine countenance, emerged from a nearby bush and walked towards Drew, while at the same time motioning for the rest of the grunts to step aside. As his Pokemon gathered closer to him, Drew narrowed his eyes, recognizing who was that...

"May... I knew you'd be here." the green-haired lad said. "I can imagine why you're working with these guys... but I'm afraid I'll have to inform you that I won't let myself be captured. Which means, you'll have to face me in a Pokemon battle."

May stopped a few feet away from her friend and rival and got a Pokeball ready. "I have not come to chit-chat, Drew. Though I'd rather not do this, you will have to come with me, whether you want it or not." she said, hating herself for what she was about to do. "If you are going to oppose this, I will have no choice but to make you come, so... get ready! Glaceon, spotlight!"

"_EOOOON!_" the graceful Ice-Type Pokemon chanted in his melodious voice as he popped out of his Pokeball and landed on the dusty street with a feline grace, taking a good look at the three Pokemon surrounding Drew. His insticts told him that it was not going to be hard to defeat Roserade and Flygon, but he was more uncertain about Absol...

Drew sighed, recalling Roserade and Flygon. "Well, if this is how you want it, May... I have no choice but to do my best to defeat you. Absol, your turn again. Do you feel up to it?"

"_Absol!_" the Dark-type answered, even though the hits he had taken from Shiftry earlier in the battle had left a bit of a mark. He crouched down on all fours, ready to lunge at his opponent... and May shook her head and gave her first order.

"As you prefer, Drew... Glaceon, use Bubblebeam!" the girl answered. The Ice-Type Eevee evolution's eyes lit up, shining with an intense whitish-azure light, and he opened his mouth, shooting out an high-speed stream of bubbles that struck Absol head-on, causing him to flinch and be stunned for a moment. Drew began fearing that his Pokemon was too tired to go on fighting, but much to his relief, Absol stood up again, shook his head and got ready for another round.

"I'm afraid I've been too hasty this time..." Drew murmured to himself. "That last Superpower attack has weakened Absol, and he might not be able to last long in a marathon fight. Well, if that's the case, I'll just have to end this quickly. Absol, use Night Slash!"

"_Sol!_" the Dark-type answered unhesitatingly. Just as Glaceon seemed about to start a new attack, and some hail was beginning to fall down around his lithe body, Absol dashed forward and struck out with his claws, surrounded in a barely-visible black aura. Glaceon howled in pain and staggered, but managed to stand... and when May made a motion with her head, the Ice-Type's small body began glowing in a strange azure light, which meant he was about to use a powerful attack...

Or at least, this was the plan. But something interfered at the last moment.

A Mist attack, seemingly coming out of nowhere, completely enveloped the battlefield, catching both May and her Glaceon by surprise, and spoiling the Hail attack that Glaceon was about to use! With a surprised yelp, May looked around himself, seeing the other Team Vicious grunts stepping backwards in fear, and hearing somebody else's swift pacing coming from an unknown direction! She turned around, hoping it was the right direction... and in the midst of the blinding fog, she suddenly came face to face with a huge azure-skinned sea tortoise with big, peacweful eyes... and with a tall, elegant-looking rose-haired girl, whom May had no trouble recognizing!

"Yo." the girl said, smiling and winking at May.

"So... Sol... Soledad?" May exclaimed, caught off guard by the smile and the affable tone that the winner of the latest Hoenn Grand Festival was using with her. May sure was not expecting to see her so early on, and under such circumstances! Her plan was to face Soledad only after dealiong with Drew and Harley, and only with enough Team Vicious grunts at her side. "What... what are you doing here?"

"Well, can't I go say hello to an old friend of mine, while I was passing through?" Soledad answered cheerfully, as if the fact that a Pokemon battle was about to rage around her was none of her concern. "Especially since somebody told me that this friend was in a bit of a pinch, and I could have helped her get out of it."

May stood on the defensive. She knew that she was being spied upon by Demitri, and she was not going to risk Max and Hilde's life because of an imprudence. She stepped away from Soledad and took another Pokeball, probably her Blaziken's... but much to her surprise, Soledad's expression didn't change at all. "Oh, and if you're worried about being spied upon... don't fret! My Lapras' Mist attack should interfere with trasmission devices, so we can have some time to chat to ourselves. Pretty neat, huh?"

"_La Lapras!_" the sea tortoise chanted.

May blinked behind her visor, then looked at her shoulder, where she knew that Demitri had placed a trasmission device. Now, the bean-sized trasmitter was blinking in an odd manner and emitting unusual red lights... which probably meant that the Mist attack was actually hindering its functions.

oooooooooo

One thing Demitri loved was advanced technology. Thanks to the transmitter he and his minions had placed on May's uniform, he was able to monitor his new underling's progresses by simply sitting upon his desk, and to verify whether May was actually doing what she had been ordered to. It had been that way up until then, and Demitri had to admit that he liked the way he was holding her in thrall and how the fight with Drew's Absol was going.

Which was why he was more than a little annoyed when the screen in front of him began malfunctioning!

"What? What... is the meaning of this?" he exclaimed in irritation, hitting the screen which was now showing nothing but static. The transmission had been interrupted, and he couldn't even hear what was being said anymore. "I had been assured that our transmitter would have allowed us to keep a watch on that brat wherever she went! Why is the transmission being disturbed now?"

Much to his chagrin, the only people in the room were low-ranking grunts who had no idea how those things worked. "Er... we... we really have no idea, master Demitri!" one of them meekly answered. "There must have been an interference or something... or maybe the transmitter suffered a blow during the battle!"

"I was told that it was too robust to be damaged so easily!" the young Team Vicious commander shouted, slamming his hand on his desk. "So now you get to work and repair this screen! This is an order!"

The grunts quickly got to work... or better say, they got to the screen and tried to make it function again with the most mundane methods they could think of, by tilting the screen or hitting it... all of which they had to do under Demitri's hateful stare, which made them think he was ready to pounce on them at a moment's notice...

Demitri grit his teeth and looked around. Where was that good-for-nothing Stefan, when he needed him?

oooooooooo

"Don't worry, May, now there's no way they can spy on us while we're talking." Soledad said as she and her Lapras were approaching the chestnut-haired girl in a way as not to make her go on the defensive. "In fact... while we're here, couldn't you take that mask off for now? You know, I don't like chatting with what appears to be a faceless robot..."

May hesitated a little... but the truth was, she was actually hoping for someone to help her, and she wanted to get rid of her oppressive secret just as much as Drew and Soledad wanted to know about it. So, after a few long seconds, and after making sure drew and his Pokemon were still there, May brought both her hands to her helmet and took it off, letting her long chestnut hair flow down both sides of her head. This was when Soledad was close enough to see the almost pleading expression in her young friend's deep eyes, and that there was no need to be as perceptive as Drew and Soledad were to understand that May was desperate to tell them what was really going on.

"May..." Solidad said, appearing more and more like a patient older sister trying to support a younger one. "I told you, we can talk safely now. So... what happened? You are not the kind of person to join those people of your own free will, I know you all too well."

The younger girl stepped forward, with Drew standing at her side in an encouraging manner. "Solidad..." she said, her eyes wavering a little. "I... yes, it's true... I didn't join these people... Team Vicious, they call themselves... of my own will. They have Max hostage... and they are forcing me... to kidnap other trainer, just like Harley a few days ago. It was I who captured him and brought him to them... oh, good heavens, what kind of person am I? How... how could I...?"

"May..." Drew said, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "Please, don't let your disconfort get to you. It's not the time to play the blame game. Let's just say... you couldn't see any other way out, and you were trying to keep your brother safe."

May nodded slowly and regained her composure, now feeling angrier than she had ever been. What she wanted to, right at that moment, was to walk up to Demitri and punch him out. "Yeah... that's true. They caught Max and a girl who's a starter trainer just like him." she answered. "I was ordered to capture you, Drew, as well as Harley and soledad in exchange for Max and Hilde's safety. But... frankly, I am afraid they might turn back on their word even if I did what they wanted."

"I think any other person, in your place, would have done what you did as well." the Pewter City coordinator stated. "And I have to say, those criminals look like they're thinking pretty big. Kidnapping some of the most experiences coordinators around... they must have something huge in the works!"

"They probably want to build up an army of skilled trainers and coordinators. Either to storm the Pokemon League, capture some Legendary Pokemon, or what have you." May answered. She noticed that Lapras' Mist attack was beginning to fade, and when it did, they would not be safe anymore. "But... this isn't the time to think about what Team Vicious might or might not do. If we don't get an idea soon, we'll be discovered."

Drew smiled and rubbed at his chin, getting an idea already. "I think I know what to do. Admittedly, it's kinda risky, but... if it works, we can get to Team Vicious' hideout and rescue Max and the others. After all... Max is kept in the same place you have to return to, right?"

May nodded. "Yes... hold on, Drew, I think I understand what you mean!" she affirmed. "In other words, you and Soledad are going to pretend having been captured, and I'll take you straight to Team Vicious' hideout. Did I get it right?"

Drew winked gallantly, while Soledad nodded in approval. "That sounds like a good idea... if that is the case, then, we need to make it look like you defeated us in a Pokemon battle, May... so they won't be able to suspect a deceit!" the Pewter City coordinator stated. "And when they least expect it, we strike! Those scoundrels who captured Max and Harley won't even know what hit them!"

For the first time ever since Max had been kidnapped, May managed to crack an hesitant smile. "Well... alright then! Drew, Soledad, I'll let Blaziken and Venusaur out as well! I need to make it look like it had been a difficult battle, after all..." she affirmed. Quickly, the brunette put her helmet back on and sent out her fully-evolved starter and her strongest Grass-type, before whispering something in their ears and in Glaceon's. The three Pokemon all nodded in assent, while Drew and Soledad whispered something to their own Pokemon in a similar way. Before the Team vicious grunts could see them ;venusaur, Blaziken and Glaceon placed themselves in a circle around May, panting as if they had just sustained a very hard fight... and at the same time, Absol, Flygon, Roserade and Lapras laid down on the ground and acted like they had been defeated, in order to make the whole charade look believable. Drew and Soledad knelt on the ground beside their Pokemon, as if checking on them... and that was the scene that the Team Vicious grunt saw before them as soon as the Mist attack faded away.

"No! Lapras!" Soledad exclaim, acting as if she had actually just lost a battle.

Drew shook his head. "I can't believe this..." he murmured. "I'd never have expected you to become that powerful..."

May took a short breath, hoping her actin abilities were as good as her friends'. "I told you, didn't I? By joining Team Vicious, I became a lot stronger than I could have if I had remained a licensed trainer." she said, trying to sound direct and self-assured. "And now... enough talking, you've lost! Men, take these two and keep them from running away! Make sure they don't try anything funny until we're back to HQ."

Somewhat surprised, the Team Vicious grunts soon got their act together and saw that things seemed to be under control, so they got closer to Drew and Soledad, forcing them to recall their Pokemon before tying their wrists together with strong ropes and start pushing them forward.

"Ow!" Soledad exclaimed, when a rough shove hurt her wrist. "Enough with pushing already! I can walk on my own, thank you very much!"

Drew, for his part, was faking indignation very well. "Ugh... don't you try hurting my friend, you scoundrels!" he exclaimed. "Where are you going to take us now? What do you have in mind?"

"Enough with your complaining, you two!" a grunt shouted while tying the green-haired boy's wrists. "Your interference has vexed Commander Demitri quite a bit, and you aren't going to get away this time! From now on, you'll start a new life as servants of Team Vicious, soon to be the most powerful organization in the world!"

"We will never serve you." Soledad hissed, trying to get free of the ropes tying her hands together.

"Hmph, this is what we're going to see. Your former friend who just now defeated you didn't seem to be so hesitant about it." another grunt mentioned. "And now, move! And you, new grunt... you did a good job, and I'm sure commander Demitri will be satisfied when we'll show him these two champions on a silver platter!"

"I don't care about what you want to do." May answered. "I only care about having my brother back. I hope for your sake you haven't even put a scratch on him."

The grunt who had spoken before chuckled in amusement. "Heheheee... don't worry, a pact is still a pact. And commander Demitri is a honorable person. You'll soon be able to see your beloved little bro again. After these two are safely locked up behind bars, that is. Heheheee..."

May looked down and clenched a fist at her side. She resisted the strong urge to answer, and resigned to waiting until they were back to HQ, in order to start with their plan to save Max, Hilde and Harley. There was no room for error this time...

oooooooooo

"Commander Demitri, looks like our minicam had resumed working." one of the grunts in the young executive's officer stated, pointing at the screen in front of them, which had started showing once again the battle, or rather its results.

"Yeah, kinda hard not to notice." Demitri snarked nonchalantly. "Oh well. That means the plan is going on without any more hitches. May did just what we requested of her... and we'll soon have two great coordinators at our beck and call. A Grand Festival winner with a great grasp of strategy ... what more could we wish for? Okay... make all the necessary preparatives to greet our new guests... and call my idiot brother to my office. I'm going to need him soon enough."

The grunts had the feeling that their boss was being overconfident about this, but they dared not contradict him, and instead began following the order, saluting before walking out of the room and leaving Demitri to giggle dementedly to himself, satisfied about the results of his plan.

"And this is done!" he chuckled. "Hehehee... I'm sure those two losers, Cezar and Jakov, are still stumbling around looking for possible recruits... heh, it's their funeral. For my part, I'm sure our leader will praise me when I'll present May, Drew, Harley and soledad to him! Hehehee..."

La recluta che aveva parlato prima sghignazzò divertita. "Hehehee... tranquilla, un patto è un patto, e il signor Demitri è un uomo d'onore. Tra non molto potrai rivedere il tuo caro fratellino. Una volta che questi due saranno ben custoditi dietro due file di sbarre, si intende! Heheheee..."

oooooooooo

As much as DEmitri liked to think he had everything under control, he had no idea that one of the people closest to him was now working to undermine him. In fact, his brother Stefan was now sitting in his own room, working on a plan that could potentially be devastating for Team Vicious... and for Demitri's chances to curry favour with his boss! The young man was typing furiously at a keyboard, looking at a few files - namely, the programs controlling the security cameras and the cages in which the Pokemon captured by Team Vicious were being kept. He was looking for a possible weak point in the system, one that he could use without tipping his hand too much.

"Okay... let's see how these mechanisms work... quite interesting..." he murmured to himself. "Looks like there's a strange locking system that recognized digital prints... so, in theory, all I have to do is bypass the memorized patterns and the cages would open for anyone. Still, that leaves the security cameras, which are a bit more of a problem. I can't deactivate them without revealing myself... I'll have to wait for a better moment, if I want to get that Ralts and all those Pokemon free. Still, the fact that surveillance isn't as fool-proof as my brother would like to think is a positive."

After saving his work, Stefan closed his laptop and took a quick look at his wristwatch, seeing that it was already kind of late. Better to get a move on, or Demitri would have started to suspect something. Still, he knew he could now help those guys... and maybe appease his conscience who was growing louder and louder every time..."

oooooooooo

A few hours later...

As a grunt knocked at Demitri's door, and the young Team Vicious executive murmured an affirmative before the door opened up with a brief clicking sound. Immediately, the hit squad that had been sent to capture Drew arrived, dragging the prisoners along, and a predatory grin plastered itself on Demitri's face as he saw that both Drew and Soledad were there. Talk about hitting two Taillows with one stone!

"Oh, very well!" Demitri stated rubbing his hands together as May entered last, closing the door behind her. Soledad glared at the Team Vicious executive, who ignored her and went on. "I see you've fulfilled your mission now, my dear little May! You managed to bring both Drew and Soledad to us! Now four of Hoenn's top coordinators are in our hands! You will be rewarded for your success!"

"What are you going to do with us, huh?" Drew asked threateningly. "If you want us to work for you, my answer is a big fat no!"

"Is that so, brat?" Demitri fired back. He stepped close to the green-haired boy and roughly seized him by his shirt, pulling him close until only a couple inches separated their faces. Drew was not about to give him the satisfaction of seeing him afraid, and glared back at him. "I guess you don't know much about Team Vicious, huh? Then, let me remind you that we have your friend here working for us. We always find a way to convince people... always! And to challenge us is to be tired of living! And now..."

With a rough gesture of his arm, Demitri threw Drew to the ground, and the green-haired lad grit his teeth in sudden pain as he ended up sprawled on the ground, causing May to seethe with anger. She forced herswelf to be patient, she would pay Demitri back very soon...

"Take these two to their cells. Some time on their own will convince them to be more reasonable. Of course, take all of their Pokemon before that. We don't want them to rebel, do we?" Demitri stated. "And call Stefan too. He'll take care of their cells. May, since you're the reason why this operation was a success... by all means, you can accompany them! Hehehee..."

"_Laugh all you want..._" Soledad thought to herself while being dragged away by the grunts. "_Your triumph won't last long. We're going to wipe that smug grin off your face soon..._"

oooooooooo

"So... you always wanted to find that Ralts again after that day, right?" Hilde asked, as she listened to the story Max was telling her from his own cell. She had no idea her friend / rival had already had such a touching experience with Pokemon, even before he had started on his journey.

Max smiled melanchonically as he adjust his glasses. "Yeah... and I felt a familiar feeling earlier on, here... it kinda seems to me that at this moment that very same Ralts is here, and he's just waiting for me to come fetch him. I know, I know... it's kinda ridiculous, but I noticed such coincidences do happens from time to time."

"Who knows, maybe it will actually come true!" Hilde said with a shrug. "Though... well, we'll have to get out of here before we know for sure, and it's going to be rather hard..."

Max raised a hand to motion for her to talk in a quieter voice. "Sssh! Hold on a sec here... I think I heard someone coming!"

Hilde blinked and got closer to the corridor, tending her ears and managing to hear some confused voices getting closer, and even if it was distorted by that sort of gas mask they all wore, the girl thought she recognized May's voice, along with a few others she couldn't recognize. Without knowing what to expect, the children began waiting for the Team Vicious grunts to come...

And were quite surprised when, just as they were aboutto arrive, there was a dull thud, followed by a sudden gasp... and the sound of an automated door closing, and Pokeballs being opened up! Several swift shadows darted here and there, and the flabbergasted Team Vicious grunts couldn't do anything before being knocked out like a bunch of amateurs!

"Argh... the treachery! Help..." a grunt managed to murmur before fainting.

"Well, that takes care of these guys." a clear female voice said. "Now, let's see about giving the what for to that guy as well... huh? Why is he stopping his comrades from following us?"

"What... what are they doing?" Max asked himself, not really knowing what to think. However, he was sure he had heard that girl's voice somewhere, he just wasn't sure where... "Sounds to me like they're quarreling..."

"Hold on a second!" another Team Vicious grunt exclaimed. "We don't need to fight! You remember me, May? It's me, Stefan, Demitri's brother... and I'm on your side!"

"Stefan!" May exclaimed in surprise a moment later, probably as Stefan took his helmet off and showed his face. "Drew, Soledad... we don't have to fight him! He's... different from the others, I can assure you!"

Drew and Soledad? Max's eyes went wide... so that's where he had already heard those voices! So, Drew was with May... and there was that coordinator who had defeated his sister at the Grand Festival! What was going on? Well... at least there was the chance that things were going to get better...

"Hmm... can we trust what our friend is saying... Stefan?" Drew's voice asked suspiciously. "Aren't you trying to get our trust and backstab us?"

"You can trust me, really!" Stefan's voice answered. "I can't tolerate what Team Vicious is doing any more... so I decided to help you and save your friends! And... you'll need me to save the Pokemon that are held prisoner here!"

"Alright then... we'll give you our trust." Soledad answered. "Make sure we don't come to regret it. And now... come on, guys, we have to free the prisoners and give Team Vicious what they have coming!"

In his cell, Max turned to Hilde and smiled joyfully! "Yay! I think we're saved now! My sister and her friends are coming to help us out of here! Looks like... that Team Vicious guy that had lured us in a trap, has now repented and decided to help us!" he exclaimed, much to Hilde's relief, and the girl managed a rare smile.

"What? Is... is this for real?" she exclaimed happily. A split second later, the steps became faster and clearer... and from a corner popped up May, joined by her two friends and by the turncoat Team Vicious grunt, holding the keys to the cells. Before anyone could question him, Stefan opened the door to Max's cell, allowing the young beginning trainer to run to his older sister and hug her for all he was worth!

"May!" the boy exclaimed. "And there are Drew and Soledad as well! How did you...?"

"It was thanks to these awesome friends I've got!" May answered, looking at Drew and Soledad with endless gratitude. "Are you okay, Max? They didn't hurt you and Hilde, did they?"

His sister's motor mouth did not annoy Max this time, as he could understand her perfectly. "Don't worry, sis... we're okay! They had us do a few tiring exercises, but Hilde and I are alright!" he stated, while Stefan made haste to free Hilde as well. "You, on the other hand... are you okay? Do you have your Pokemon with you? That crazy guy is soon going to realize something is wrong, and he'll send all of his minions at us! We need to escape, before it's too late!"

"Don't worry, Max..." Stefan answered, pointing at May, Drew and Soledad readying their Pokeballs. "I don't think anyone will be able to stop them from getting to my brother! You, on the other hand... you are the ones who have no Pokemon, right?"

"Yeah... Team Vicious took them away from us." Hilde answered. "Do you happen to know where they're keeping them?"

Stefam smiled and gave her a thumbs-up. That was just the moment he had been waiting for... "Luckily, I do, and I can take you there. But we need to make haste, before my former companions get to us. And besides which, Max, there's someone who would very much like to meet you again, and I'm sure you do as well!" he stated. May seemed a little puzzled, but Max caught on almost immediately.

"I'm not really sure what you're talking about..." May answered. "But in any case, do what you need to! Soledad, can you go with them? I think they'll need your help... Drew and I will handle Demitri... and I'm sorry, Stefan, but even he's your brother, we won't let him off the hook that easily for what he did to Max!"

"You don't need to apologize, May... I think my brother should get what he deserves for what he did to you!" Stefan answered. "We'll go fetch the Pokemon and come to your aid as soon as we can! I think we're in for one heck of a fight, too..."

"We know." Drew answered. "And we're obviously equipped to fight it, or else we wouldn't be here in the first place!"

"Then, let's get this show on the road!" Soledad answered, her eyes sparkling in determination...

oooooooooo

To say that Demitri's mood had plummeted would have been a gross understatement. Things had gone sour so quickly that he still had trouble processing what was going on. He was staring in front of himself in utter bewilderment, refusing to believe that everything had slipped away from his hands in mere seconds! And it had been his brother to aid those three insolent rugrats! How was that possible? How could it all be lost just then? It wasn't fair... he hadn't committed any mistake! His plan could not fail! Not when he was so close!

"C... Commander Demitri, what are you doing still here?" a female grunt asked, opening the door to his office. "We... we need to stall those intruders somehow! They're in the prison block, and we are trying to surround them... but it won't be easy, I'm afraid!"

With an angered growl, Demitri shook himself out of his reverie and ran to his desk to retrieve three Pokeballs, one of which was black with purple stripes! If he really had to take care of things himself... at least he would take down his traitorous brother and that presumptuous little girl who was out to ruin his plans!

oooooooooo

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	43. End Of The Line

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 41 - End Of The Line**

Team Vicious' situation had turned sour in a few seconds. Max, Hilde, Drew, Solidad and even Stefan had quickly grabbed their Pokeballs as soon as the two children had reached the room where their Pokeballs were being kept. In a moment, Max had let Mudkip, Ledyba, Zigzagoon and Poochyena out, with Hilde standing right beside him. In spite of their lack of experience, the youngest of May's team were ready to give her all of her support...

"Now, Treecko... use Quick Attack!" the girl exclaimed. The lizard-like Grass-type and struck the closest opponent, a fierce-looking Spearow, in the face. The birdlike Pokemon fell with a keen shriek, and Treecko allowed himself a small victorious grin bwefore his trainer's voice recalled him to reality. "Don't falter now! We're right in the bowels of a criminal team's hideout, and we're at risk every moment we stay! Keep fighting, we have to get out of here!"

"_Treecko!_" the Grass-type exclaimed as he stood on guard once again. Even Stefan was doing his best to help his new friends and show himself to be worth their trust, and his Gulpin and Wingull, despite not being that strong when compared to other Team Vicious Pokemon, were still holding their own pretty well!

"Wingull, use Double Team!" the young man exclaimed, and the seagull-like Pokemon seemed to literally split in two identical copies as he swept down towards a Kadabra, barely dodging the Psybeam fired against him. A well placed Wing Attack knocked the opponent down, and the Team Vicious grunt who was facing Stefan had no choice but to recall Kadabra, gritting his teeth in anger.

"Ugh... you damn traitor!" the grunt exclaimed. "You're our commander's brother! How dare you turn against him? You owe him everything you have! Without Demitri, you're absolutely nothing!"

"Sorry, but I will not keep serving my brother like some sort of mindless servant!" Stefan bravely answered, as he motioned for his Gulpin to retreat before an Aron. "Demitri only thinks I'm an expendable pawn, and he'll throw me away the moment I won't be useful to him any more! And besides which, I'm sick of being a criminal! I decided that, from now on, I will be a trainer just like Max and Hilde, and I will make a name for myself in an honest way!"

Max smiled to himself as his Poochyena downed a Team Vicious Furret, and his Ledyba assaulted a Stantler with her small fists. At least, Stefan seemed to have become aware that he was walking a bad road, and was now trying to atone for that.

However, it was May, Drew and Soledad who were giving the most grief to Team Vicious: their Pokemon were so far above the level of those of a typical grunt, that there was no chance Team Vicious could put up more than token resistance. May seemed to be the most determined of all. Now that she knew Max was safe, she was absolutely determined to pay Demitri back for what he had put her through!

May's Blaziken unleashed a powerful Blaze Kick while spinning around, and blowing away several Pokemon who were trying to surround him. Sharing his trainer's anger and indignation, the Fire / Fighting type was wiping away everything around him in a manner reminescent of a martial arts movie, while Drew and soledad picked off any remaining stragglers. There was no way to stop them, as they fought their way deeper and deeper into Team Vicious' hideout!

"Out of the way!" May exclaimed, while several Team Vicious Mankeys were taken down by her starters' fire-wreathed legs. "I have business to attend with your boss, and I have nothing against you... let me pass, and I won't do anything against you!"

Three masked grunts recalled their defeated Pokemon and started running away in front of May's determination. "Man... guys, I think we'd better listen to this girl! She's playing for keeps now!" one of the three exclaimed. The criminals backed away before turning their backs on May and making a break for it, trying to put as much distance as possible between them and their opponents...

"I think they're not in a fighting mood anymore." Drew commented with a small smirk, observing Team Vicious' hasty retreat. "I think our good friend Demitri is up there somewhere, and wants to pay us back for the fast one we pulled on him! What do you say, May? It wouldn't be nice to keep him waiting, would it?"

"Of course not. I wouldn't be that rude anyway." May answered with a nod, impatient o give that guy the what-for. "Drew, Soledad... could you stay here and help Max, Stefan and Hilde? Also, please, try to find Harley, I think he's down here somewhere. I'll go upstairs and take down their boss!"

"Of course, May! Leave it to us, and we'll leave you to settle your score with that Demitri guy! But be careful, and don't underrate him!" Soledad answered as her Lapras froze an enemy Kricketune solid with her Ice Beam.

"Don't worry, Soledad, I'll be careful." May answered, taking some time thanks to the fact that the Team Vicious grunts had seen things were taking a turn for the worse, and were retreating before the assaults of those they had mistaken for their prisoners. Vera got close to her younger brother and knelt down just a little, just enough to look at him straight in the eyes. "Please, Max, listen... I need to go upstairs and settle my score with the Team Vicious boss! I won't let him escape scot free... so I'll go up there, kick his butt and get back here! Please, stay here with Hilde and the others, and try not to get in trouble again, okay?"

"Of course, sis!" Max answered, not hiding his worry over his older sister. "But still... be careful, I have no idea what kind of Pokemon that guy has, and he might be more dangerous than he looks."

"I know... but this is something I have to do myself." the undaunted May answered. "Stay here, and help out as much as you can... you too, Hilde! And, by the way, Stefan?"

As the boy checked on his Wingull and Gulpin, he jumped up in surprise as he heard the girl call out to him. "Oh? Y-yes, what is it, May?" Demitri's sibing asked, still fearful that the girl wanted to get payback for him having sent them right into the Team Vicious lieutenant's trap. Instead, much tohis surprise and relief, May smiled and gave a thumbs-up, speakking in a calmer, more relaxed voice.

"Thanks for helping us! Me, Max, Hilde... and everyone else! And I apologize for being a jerk to you earlier, I was too angry to think straight!" she went on. "I have to take back what I said back then, you're not like your brother... and your place is not among these criminals!"

"Thank you, May... I'm glad you think that of me!" the boy answered, managing a smile. "Best of luck to you, May. It won't be easy to defeat my brother!"

"I wasn't expecting it to be easy anyway." May answered. "Alright, Blaziken, that's it! Let's go up there and give Demitri what's coming to him!"

"_BLAZ!_" Blaziken opened his mouth and raised his fists, before letting out a warlike yell than echoed sinisterly in the whole HQ, scaring away the grunts who still were to take part in the battle. Even Hilde, who still kept her somewhat aloof expression, nodded in awe of Blaziken's fighting spirit.

"I'm glad May is on our side now. She's even scarier than me, when she gets angry." she said to herself.

Stefan nodded, before calling out to Max. "Don't worry, May, we'll take care of things here... and as for you, Max, there's someone who's been waiting for you for quite a while now! Follow me, I'll take you there!"

"Of course!" Max answered, his heart beating faster. Maybe, he was thinking to himself as he recalled his earlier feeling, this was the time to meet Ralts again, after so long...

**oooooooooo**

Even in his office, Demitri heard Blaziken's war cry... but unlike his men, he wasn't shaken by it. On the contrary, his face scrunched into an angry grimace, and his hand convulsively grabbed one of his Pokeballs, containing one of his strongest fighters. May was surely going to get there, in his office, to challenge him to a Pokemon match... it took no huge stretch of the imagination to realize that. But it was not going to go as she was probably hoping... sure, his organization had lost a great chance to become stronger and capture some of Hoenn's finest trainers and coordinators... but at least, he was going to get his revenge on May! Even if this was the last thing he'd do, he'd see to it that May paid for her betrayal!

"C'mon, May, show your pretty little face..." he growled. "You know I won't let you go that easily, now that you have messed up my plans and kept me from currying a little favour with the boss! I guess my place in Team Vicious is in jeopardy... but at least, I can make sure you won't bother me anymore! And that goes for my traitorus brother, and your own useless one! Everyone who opposes me... I'll wipe them out, every last one!"

"Where's Demitri? Take me to your boss!" May's voice was heard from far away...

As May and Blaziken came closer and closer, Demitri grinned madly at the prospect of taking revenge, and kept smiling as Blaziken reached the door to his office and began kicking it down with all of his strength! The sound of Blaziken's legs crashing against the holdings was really disquieting, and even Demitri couldn't help but be a little worried about the power lying behind each and every one of those blows... but he was too furious to even consider giving up, and kept waiting with apparent calm as the door began giving way...

"Demitri! Come and face me!" May yelled, now closer than ever.

Finally, her Blaziken gave one last push, and the door broke down, splitting in two halves and scattering wooden splints everywhere! Shivering in anger and worry, the young criminal saw May, her pretty chestnut-haired face slightly contorted in anger, and Blaziken advancing towards him, with the Fire / Fighting Pokemon dangerously cracking his knuckles. The young coordinator and her starter entered the room and stood on guard, with Demitri regarding them with cold detachment before bursting into a bout of insane laughter!

"Hahahahaaa! Will you look at that! What do we have here? A grunt thinking she's a general, huh? You think you're so smart, don't you, May?" Demitri asked rhetorically, pacing up and down while still staring at his opponent. May had no idewhat to expect from him, but she sure didn't like the way he was going about it... "You... you think you've gotten the better of me, and you can just waltz away after ruining my plans? Well... I'll be happy to prove you wrong! You'll pay for betraying me!"

"Betray you? I was never on your side!" the chestnut-haired girl answered as she and Blaziken advanced. "You forced us to work for you by taking Max as an hostage... did you really think I would go along with your plans without that? Now... prepare to have a nice lesson taught to you! I'm taking you down here and now!"

Demitri grinned, a demented smile that sent chills down May's spine. "Heheheheee... is that so? Tough words for a fly... you think you know better than I do, brat? Huh? You thk're tough? Now you'll realize your mistake, though you won't be able to learn anything from it! Come out annd fight, Hariyama!"

The young Team Vicious commander threw his first Pokeball and sent out a Pokemon that looked very much like a sumo wrestler: large, powerful and mostly grey in colour, his hands were disproportionately huge with respect to the body, and had three clumsy fingers each. A triangular helmet of sorts protected the Pokemon's head, forming a V-shape over his eyes, and he had an orange pattern on his belly that resembled a rising sun. Yellow skirt-like extensions protruded from the Pokemon's abdomen, and his legs were large and squat, with two-toed feet. While his body looked obese, it was clear that it was also incredibly strong and hardy... it was a Pokemon May knew quite well, having already seen Ash fight (and defeat) one in his battle against Greta, during his challenge to the Battle Frontier...

"Destroy that Blaziken!" Demitri wrathfully exclaimed. "Use Brine!"

"Resist, Blaziken! Use Bulk Up!" May incited her Fire / Fighting type, who flexed his pecs and slightly curled up on himself, so that he was only exposing his bigger muscle masses to Hariyama's attack. The sumo wrestling Pokemon swept outwards with one of his powerful arms, shooting a gout of salt water that struck Blaziken's feather-covered body, causing a small puff of white vapor to come out of his body. Blaziken grunted in pain as the salt water burned his skin and staggered back, but qickly recovered, just in time to withstand Hariyama's next attack!

"Hahahahaaaa! Keep it up, Hariyama! Strike him with Arm Thrust!" Demitri laughed. Hariyama dashed forward with unsuspectable speed, and started attacking Blaziken with a series of blows from the stretched palms of his huge hands, in a series of powerful and lethal thrusts. The scarlet-feathered Pokemon managed to block the first and the second blow, but the others were too fast for him to keep up, and Blaziken ended up getting hit and thrown backwards with a grunt. But much to May's relief, Blaziken managed to roll to his feet a moment later, shrugging off the worst of the hits. Still, she needed to step up her game. Stefan was right, Demitri was a lot more dangerous than he looked... but she wasn't about to let him win!

"Alright then, looks like we'll have to pull out all the stops!" May exclaimed. "Quick, Blaziken! Use a Fire Spin attack!"

"_BLAZIKEN!_" the bird-like Fire / Fighting type answered. A red gout of flame burst out of his plumage and began spinning around him, soon changing into a pungent-smelling blazing tornado! With a mighty yell, Blaziken shot the spinning flame at Hariyama, who stood in place and tried blocking it with his powerful arms...

Demitri shook his head, amused at May and Blaziken trying to oppose him. "Hehehee... do you really think that little flame can actually give pause to my mighty Hariyama? How ridiculous... it's nothing but a candlelight to him!" he exclaimed, as his Fighting-type blocked the hurricane of scarlet flames, seemingly without suffering damage. He was about to push the blaze away and was about to retaliate with another powerful attack, but this time it was May and Blaziken who stopped him in his tracks, with a move Hariyama could not see!

"Blaziken! Use Blaze Kick to punch through the vortex!"

Demitri managed to hear May's voice over the roaring flames, and the smile died on his face as Blaziken leapt through the wall of flame he had shot, raising a leg and keeping it high! The Fire / Fighting type took a gigantic leap and executed a flawless roundabout kick, hitting the reddish flames and setting the limb literally on firem before keeping going and hitting Hariyama's prominent belly like some sort of shooting star! The sumo Pokemon was thrown back several feet, and landed on his back, shaking the ground with his corpulent mass under Demitri's incredulous, furious glare, while Blaziken quickly backflipped and landed close to his trainer, who clapped her hands in congratulations!

"Nicely done, Blaziken! I knew that confounding them with Fire Spin, and then using Fire Spin itself to power up Blaze Kick would have been a nice idea!" May exclaimed. Demitri stood his ground, grinding his teeth in frustration... but the evil smile soon returned, and the Team Vicious commander chuckled again when Hariyama stood up, a little bruised but none the worse for wear. "Er... Though I'm afraid we just managed to make him mad..."

"Hehehee.. sorry, May, looks like you forgot about Hariyama's Thick Fat ability protecting him from Fire and Ice type attacks." Demitri explained smugly. May mentally kicked herself for forgetting such an important thing. "Now... attack again, Hariyama, and use Vital Throw!"

"_Yamaa!_" the sumo wrestling Pokemon exclaimed. Once again, he tried to dash in and catch May and Blaziken offguard with his speed. Remembering that Vital Throw's weakness is that the user always loses initiative, May was about to give a new order to Blaziken, but soon stopped herself. Demitri would probabl have predicted that already, so maybe it was better to use another strategy... Blaziken allowed Hariyama to grab him and spin him around, trying to brace himself for the moment where his opponent would have let him go and crash ruinously on the walls and floor...

"Get ready, Blaziken..." May murmured to herself, worriedly watching her starter as Hariyama lifted him and swung him around like a ragdoll. As soon as Hariyama let go, sending Blaziken flying towards the ceiling at high speed, May stepped up and yelled her order. "Now's the time! Brace yourself and use Sky Uppercut!"

Blaziken was swift to react, somersaulting through the air and using the momentum she had gained to execute a spectacular acrobatic maneuver in midair. He planted his feet on the ceiling, with enough power to cause some cracks to appear on the surface of it, and bent his knees in order to gain more power. He then dashed down at his opponent, readying his fist at his side and managed to reach the unprepared and flabbergasted Hariyama when the latter was still getting back on guard... and then, Blaziken punched Hariyama will all of his might, sending him flying as if the huge sumo wrestler weighed nothing! Demitri could only gape in bewilderment as his Pokemon, having received the first serious blow in that battle, was lifted off his feet and crashed on the ground, causing the whole room to shake and a picture to fall off the wall! Hariyama mamaged to climb back to his feet, but he was slower to do so. Blaziken's Sky Uppercut had left a mark.

"You little... how dare you?" Demitri growled. "You will not humiliate me, am I clear, you presumptuous little girl? You made a really bad mistake in opposing me! You could have become a Team Vicious executive! You'd become one of the strongest trainers in the world! And I... I would have gotten my boss' praise, and perhaps even get promoted! You're going to pay for this! Nobody can pull my leg like that! Get up, Hariyama! Use your Belly Drum and show her what you're really made of!"

Hariyama picked himself up, lifted a leg in perfect sumo style and then dropped it on the ground before starting to beat his own stomach with his hands, as if he was playing a drum upon his own belly. Both May and Blaziken could almost feel that the sumo wrestling Pokemon was getting larger, and hi muscles seemed to almost be expanding... needless to say, this caused them to get alarmed! They both knew that Belly Drum maxed out a Pokemon's offensive abilities, at the cost of much of its stamina. Sure, that meant that now, a single well-placed hit could easily take down Hariyama, but landing that hit seemed like a much more difficult endeavor!

"Now we have to keep concentrated, Blaziken..." May said, seeing her Fire / Fighting type sliding once again into a comfortable guarding stance. "Be prepared to dodge, he will come at you with all of his power now!"

"_Blaz!_" Blaziken answered with a nod.

**oooooooooo**

With a keening screech, Soledad's Pidgeot swept down on a Team Vicious Kangaskahn, knocking her down with a spectacular Fly attack. Another Pokemon, a Bibarel, tried to blindside the Flying type as it landed to catch his breath, but the speed of both Pokemon and coordinator took him off guard. With a simple nod, Soledad ordered her Pidgeot to use its trademark Featherdance, and the giant pigeon quickly shook his wings and sent a small cloud of floating feathers against the beaver-like Pokemon, which began to tickle him everywhere and stealing a surprised squeal from him! The enemy Bibarel ended up rolling on the floor in laughter, leaving Drew and his friends free to reach the cells where the Pokemon were being kept.

"Okay, we got here at least." Stefan reaching for an electronic panel close to the prison block's entrance and punching in a combination. "I modified some of the settings so I could sneak in and free the Pokemon when the time was right, but I did not think I'd get the chance to do it so soon! Well, that's all the better for us, I guess. Max, the Pokemon you're looking for is here! I'll disable the protections... and the rest is up to you!""

"Thanks, Stefan..." the bespectacled boy murmured, impatient to see whether the Pokemon he had longed to see for so long was among those they were about to free. The door opened with a light metallic squeak, letting the team enter a darkened, ominous-looking room filled with small cages, a small Psychic-type Pokemon placed inside of each in an apparent state of suspended animation. Stefan inserted a new command, and Max saw a few lights over the cages changing color, turning from red to green. Drew, Soledad, Hilde and Stefan immediately started freeing the Pokemon, who thanked them with small nods as they regained consciousness and teleported away, back to the places they had been kidnapped from. In the meantime, Max had begun looking around the room, tensely looking at al the cages that were still to be opened. He was sure his Ralts friend was among them, but where? To look for a Pokemon among all those was like looking for a needle in an hayfield...

A weird feeling, like a small electrical discharge running briefly through his body, came to his aid. The young boy stood frozen in place, surprised by the sudden feeling... and slowly turned to his right, where a still unopened cage was holding a Ralts which indeed seemed to be somewhat familiar to him! Max warily approached the cage as the light right above it turned green, almost afraid he would be disappointed... but a strange feeling inside of him told him that the long-awaited for reunion had finally come, and when Ralts was finally free, a gleaming smile appeared on his face, as his eyes sparkled behind the lenses of his glasses!

"Ralts...?" the young boy asked. "Ralts... that's you, right? It's me, Max... you remember me, don't you? When... when we met each other, about two years ago... I told you that I would have met you again someday, and you could have become a member of my Pokemon team! Now... I'm here, Ralts... I'm back!"

His hands shaking in emotion, Max lifted the dome keeping the small Psychic-type prisoner, who raised his glance and crossed his young friend's eyes, while Hilde and her Treecko approached in curiosity. Even though Ralts couldn't speak, he seemed to be able to transmit to Max's mind what he was thinking... especially the fact that he was overjoyed at meeting once again his longtime friend! Two years had gone by since that fateful day... but the memory was fresh and immutable in the minds of both Pokemon and human!

"That's... that's the Ralts you spoke to me about?" Hilde asked. In the background, the humming noise of the other Pokemon teleporting away to safety created a strange effect. In the emotion of the moment, Max almost didn't hear his friend-rival talking to him.

"_Ralllts..._" the small creature exclaimed, floating towards Max a little before throwing himself in his arms and joyfully hugging him! This was all the confirmation Max needed... that was actually his friend Ralts, the Pokemon he had grown so fond of, and to whom he had promised they would meet again in the future! Finally, the time had come... and even though they were hardly in a good place now, they were so happy that they didn't care about being in the bowels of an enemy hideout!

"Ralts... it's really you! I could feel it... I knew we would meet again someday!" Max exclaimed, hugging his small friend for all he was worth. "Ive been thinking a lot about you, you know? I've been hoping this day would come! I... I just don't know what to say, my friend! I'm so happy... I could cry!"

"_Ralts.._" Ralts answered, hugging Max back as well as he could. Hilde wisely chose to step back some. It was a very important moment for her friend, and she was not about to risk ruining it... after all, though she wasn't as expressive as he was, she would have reacted pretty much the same way had she retrieved a Pokemon she cared a lot about.

Max and his little friend stood in place for some time, hugging each other as the rest of the team freed the other Pokemon... until Max's rational part reminded him that there was still a battle to fight, and that his sister needed help against Demitri. He detached himself just a little from Ralts and looked at him straight in the eys. "Okay... Ralts, please, listen to me, we need your hellp if we want to get out of here! Those criminals who captured you are coming from everywhere, and we need everybody's help to take them on! Can you lend us a hand? My sister is up there somewhere, and she's facing these people's boss as we speak..."

The young Ralts needed to hear nothing more and nodded decisively as his body gave off a light blue aura, as a means to say he could always count on his aid. Max thanked with a smile and a thumbs-up, then turned to the other members of his team, whose Pokemon had formed a divisory wall that was keeping the Team Vicious grunts out. "kay, everyone... sorry for wasting your time, Ralts and I are ready now!"

"No prob, Max... you were greeting your friend, after all, and it was only fair that you'd get your time to do it." Soledad answered. "Speaking of which, guys, I'm going to look for Harley. He must be in the next cell block, since I didn't see him in the place where Max was being kept... can you manage without me for a while?"

"It's okay, Soledad!" Drew answered as his Roserade pointed to a group of grunts that was coming. "You go free Harley, we'll take care of the rest! Good luck!"

"Thanks, same to you!" Soledad answered. "Come with me, Pidgeot, we still have something to take care of while our friends wreck this place!"

The giant pigeon nodded in assent and followed his trainer, while Drew's Roserade unleashed a Petal Dance on a bunch of Team Vicious Pokemon, including a Tentacruel, an Onix and a Nuzleaf that were struck by the squall of petals. However, more enemies were coming, and the elegant Grass / Poison type couldn't hold them forever...

"WE have to stand together if we are to stop these Pokemon... my former organization is pulling out all the stops!" Stefan exclaimed. "And my Wingull and Gulpin are tired... okay, I'm counting on you, Mawile!"

Stefan sent out a Pokemon that, for some reason, he had not used for facing Max - a Mawile, a small yellow-and-black Pokemon of humanoid form, wearing some sort of yellow skirt, black hands and feet... and, the most unusual thing of all, two strange tooth-filled horns sticking out of the back of her head, made so that they resembled a pair of half-opened jaws. The Pokemon, one of the few pure Steel-types, stood on guard, her head-jaws snapping shut threateningly as the first enemy reinforcements began coming, and Max sent out his Mudkip and his Poochyena, while Hilde already had her Treecko and Dustox out.

"Stop! Stay where you are!" one of the gas mask wearing grunts exclaiming, an Hitmontop by his side. "Do not force us to go all out on you! And you, Stefan... come back to us, and we'll put a good word for you with your brother! We'll tell you that these peasants forced you to jump ship on us!"

"You sure have some troubles in the family, you know that?" Hilde said almost tiredly. Stefan shrugged, and looked up to give his answer.

"Sorry, but I'll never accept that offer! Demitri has taken advantage of me long enough... it's time for me to show him what I really think of him!" he fired back. "Mawile, show what you're made of! Use Iron Defense!"

The strange Steel-type Pokemon screeched, a keening noise that sounds like a buzzsaw cutting through tempered iron as its defense abilities skyrocketed... and when the Team Vicious grunts began their next assault, the team was ready to take care of them!

**oooooooooo**

The battle had definitely gotten more violent and frantic, as both May and Demitri's Pokemon tried to one-up their opponent in that pitched battle! No quarter was being asked for nor given, and even if both fighters were tiring themselves out, they were not giving up, and were keeping exchanging their best blows. Blaziken was using his superior speed and agility to avoid Hariyama's Belly Drum powered blows, as May kept a close eye on the sumo Pokemon so she could see a weak point in his defense and allow Blaziken to score a decisive attack.

"Keep it up, Hariyama! Make him wish his egg had never hatched!" a crazed Demitri yelled in an annoying falsetto. "Use Vital Throw to crush him and that little fool! Now!"

Hariyama opened up his mighty arms and ran towards Blaziken, in an attempt to grab him in a deadly embrace... but the agile Fire / Fighting type was not about to let himself get grabbed, and his trainer was quick enough to counterattack! "Hurry, Blaziken! Use Agility to dodge it!" the chestnut-haired girl exclaimed. The birdlike Pokemon dodged with a sudden burst of speed and avoided Hariyama's grasp, rendering his Vital Throw useless... then, using his powerful legs, he leapt away, over Hariyama and finally off the wall, in the perfect position to attack! Demitri yelped in anger and surprise when he realized, too late to do anything, that Hariyama was wide open!

And May already knew what to do to even the score!

"Alright, Blaziken! Let's settle this with Brave Bird!" the Hoenn prodigy exclaimed. Blaziken let out a fierce cry and spread his powerful clawed arms, before dashing towards the surprised Hariyama with all of his power, his body surrounded by a glowing lilac aura. There was nothing the sumo Pokemon could do to soften the blow... and in fact, Blaziken managed to hit his opponent like a shooting star, causing himto widen his eyes in pain, and then to collapse to the ground in a daze, while Blaziken landed on one knee and spent a few seconds recovering his breath.

"No! Curses, this was not part of the plan!" a furious Demitri ranted. "How is that possible? How could I let this happen? Ugh... it can't be helped. Return, Hariyama!"

The young Team Vicious executive recalled his defeated Fighting-type, and glared hatefully at May as he took another Pokeball... one that had something sinisterly different from a normal one. It was black with purple streaks all over, and it looked strange and dangerous. May's expression of joy and pride quickly vanished, replaced by one of doubt as the girl recalled her worn-out Blaziken.

"Thanks for your help, Blaziken. You can take a good rest for now..." she said, never detaching her eyes from that ominous-looking black-and-purple Pokeball. "And what would that be? I've never seen a Pokeball like that..."

The girl almost shivered in fear when that insane triumphant look gleamed again in Demitri's eyes. "Heheheee... what you're about to see right now, my dear May... is Team Vicious' ultimate weapon! The Dark Pokemon, creatures whose fighting abilities have been taken to the next level! Thabks to them, we will soon become the most powerful organization in the world... but I guess I'd better give you a practical demonstration, so... come out, Dark Magneton! Show this silly little girl what you Dark Pokemon can really do!"

The black ball snapped open, and May saw a strange Pokemon, apparently composed of three large Magnemites joined to each other by their own magnetic fields, appearing right in front of her. It was a Magneton, obviously, and a Pokemon May had already seen before... but there was something strange and disquieting about this particular Magneton, something May couldn't quite put her finger on but that made her feel very uneasy. And it wasn't just those three inexpressive eyes glaring blankly in front of the strange Electric / Steel type... a strange aura was floating around the inorganic creature, some sort of dark cloud that made it hard to look directly at it. Something was definitely off about that Pokemon, no two ways about it... but May had no time to think about that. Now, she had to grit her teeth and choose a Pokemon that could actually oppose the metallic menace! Of course, Wartortle was out of the question... she was counting more on her Glaceon or her Venusaur to defeat Demitri's Magneton.

After quickly weighing the pros and cons, May decided to send out her Grass-type. "Alright... I have no idea what thatMagneton can do, but I'm not going to make this easy on you! Venusaur, spotlight!" she exclaimed. Another Pokeball flew, and the mighty Grass / Poison type came out, the flower on its back in full bloom! With a grunt similar to that of a crocodile, Venusaur got ready to fight.

"_SAUR!_"

"Hehehee... interesting!" Demitri commented, undaunted by the Grass type's resistance to Electric attacks. "So, I can see you decided to play it safe for now, huh? Well, not that it will avail you much, when my Dark Magneton will destroy your precious Venusaur! Dark Magnet, use Flash Cannon!"

May frowned in worry when a shiny energy ball erupted out of Dark Magneton's body and struck Venusaur head-on, causing him to grunt in pain as a brilliant light lit up the whole room! The plant-lizard responded by shaking the huge flower on its back, and by taking advantage of the blinding light, he shot several green seeds at Dark Magneton. Most of them missed their mark and landed harmlessly on the floor, but two of them struck true, and clung to Dark Magneton's body without it or Demitri noticing.

"Venusaur!" May exclaimed, shielding her eyes from the blinding light. "Are you alright? Try to resist and use Amnesia!"

The Grass / Poison type Pokemon managed to get at a safe distance away from Dark Magneton, who was now using its Magnet Rise attack to lift itself off the ground and out of Venusaur's range. May's Pokemon concentrated, trying to empty his mind of all unnecessary thoughts. As soon as he calmed down enough, Venusaur glared at Dark Magneton again, noticing that the Dark Pokemon's eyes were dangerously narrowed, as if it was taking aim. It was probably using its Lock-On attack, which meant that it was more than likely preparing to fire a devastating Zap Cannon.

Demitri confirmed May's fears a second later. "Hehehee... and now, Magneton... finish it with Zap Cannon!" he said with childish glee, as the girl crossed her fingers behind her back, hoping her gambit would pay off...

The young Team Vicious executive grinned nastily as a huge, crackling ball of electrical energy formed right in the middle of his Pokemon's magnetized bodies... but a split second later, the room was filled with a screeching noise of metal upon metal, and Dark Magneton convulsed in surprise when a bunch of leaf-covered vines burst out of the Leech Seed Venusaur had earlier placed upon it, taking advantage of the temporary blindness caused by Flash Cannon! The vines quickly grew and wrapped Dark Magneton in a tight embrace, both draining its energy and pulling it downwards, so as to contrast its Magnet Rise! No matter how much the magnetic Pokemon struggled, Venusaur's Leech Seed was pulling it down with phenomenal strength, forcing the Dark Pokemon on the floor, where it was more vulnerable to Venusaur's deciding blow!

"Ugh... you little brat, I really didn't see that coming!" Demitri exclaimed in irritation. "Your Venusaur had hit my Daark Magneton with a Leech Seed, and I didn't even notice!"

"I have no idea what makes your Magneton different... but brute strength is never a good substitute for strategy!" the girl stated, as the vines dragged Dark Magneton down to the ground and forced it to stay down. "Even more than the type matchings, the number of known moves and the rest... a trainer needs to both trust his or her Pokemon and know how to use their skills. And now... let's wrap this up, Venusaur! Use Earthquake!"

Demitri widened his eyes in horror... he had no idea May's Venusaur had such a powerful move, and one that could be so damaging for his Electric / Steel type, and he had no way to counter as, one second later, Venusaur jumped and dropped to the ground with all of his weight, causing the ground to be shaken and Dark Magneton to be violently struck by the seismic waves! The magnetic Pokemon screeched in powerless rage as a second seismic wave hit it head-on and sent it to crash on the wall behind it with a deafening noise! The Electric / Steel Pokemon slumped to the floor, which May almost took as a sign that it was defeated... until the same smoky black aura she had seen before flared up around Dark Magneton's body, and the dark Pokemon, while still wrapped by the earlier Leech Seed , managed to levitate back in an upright position! Both May and her Venusaur were struck dumb at this, as they were unable to believe that Pokemon had actuallly picked himself up after received a doubly super-effective hit!

"Heheheheee..." Demitri giggled maliciously, even though it was clear that he was relieved at the fact that his Pokemon could still fight. "So, what about it? My Dark Pokemon are much tougher than a standard Pokemon... as you can see, a simple blow like that one simply won't be enough to get them down for the count!"

"But... what...?" May stammered, pointing at the still-floating Dark Magneton. "I can't believe it... after a Ground-type attack that powerful, no Magneton should be left standing! How... how does it do this?"

"You'd like to know, don't you? This is just a taste of the power you foolishly gave up!" Demitri gloated triumphantly. "Now... Dark Magneton, unleash your fury on that girl and her Venusaur! Show what Team Vicious is all about!"

May and her Venusaur braced themselves for the coming assault, as golden sparkles began crackling around Dark Magneton's body...

**oooooooooo**

"Not here... Not here... darn, how can this be?" Soledad murmured to herself as she looked through all the cells, searching for her kidnapped friend. She was sure he was there, somewhere... there was no other place he could be in!

Fed up with looking around, Soledad decided that, at that point, it was worth it to make herself heard. The hideout was in chaos already anyway... "Harley! Harley, can you hear me?" the young Pewter City champion called out, hoping tobe heard over the ruckus. "It's me, Soledad! We've come to get you out of this hole! Me, Drew... May, too! Where are you?"

"Soledad! Can you hear me?"

A relieved sigh escaped the young coordinator's lips as Harley's voice answered to her, coming from a close block of cells. With a quick run, Soledad and her Pidgeot turned a couple corners and reached a cell where the violet-haired coordinator was being kept, his Cacturne costume still on even though he seemed to have no Pokeballs with him... "Soledad! Is it a surprise to meet you here!" he exclaimed with a relieved smile. Soledad was one of the few people Harley genuinely respected, after all. "How did you get here, anyway? May suckered you in this trap as well, I'm willing to bet!"

Soledad shook her head gently as she sent out her Slowbro, her Pidgeot standing guard. "No, May has got nothing to do with it..." she answered, still wondering why was it that Harley was so hostile towards the younger coordinator. "Those Team Vicious lowlives forced her to work for them by keeping her brother Max hostage... but now, Drew and I freed Max, and May is lending us a hand! She's fighting their boss as we speak... we have to get out of here and lend her a hand! Slowbro, use Confusion to pick the lock!"

The dopey-eyed Water / Psychic type smiled vacantly as he used his telekinetic powers on the lock on Harley's cell, and just one second later, with a loud clicking sound, the door opened and Harley was able to step out, letting out a somewhat annoyed sigh. Helping out May was not exactly high on his list of favourite things to do... but since there were bigger fish to fry now, he could swallow his pride, at least for now. Furthermore, if Soledad was the one asking, he couldn't just say no to a good friend.

"Fine..." he eventually relented. "Okay, if you can come with me as I fetch my Pokeballs, I'm going to help you catch their boss! I still have a score to settle with the guy!"

Soledad smiled and winked. "THanks, Harley! I knew I could count on you!"

**oooooooooo**

Venusaur growled angrily and sent out his vines to grab Dark Magneton, inan attempt to stop the Dark Pokemon from attacking again... but it was faster than May could predict, and it quickly dodged the Vine Whip attack. There was a red flash as the earlier Leech Seed sapped away some more of Dark Magneton's energy... but it was too little to make a difference! And now, the powerful Grass / Poison type was forced into a mad zigzag to dodge his opponent's attacks, with May still waitin for an opening to have Venusaur deal a decisive blow. It wasn't easy to pick the right moment, thanks to the speed with which Dark Magneton was attacking, and Venusaur surely couldn't hold out forever...

"Darn..." the girl murmured. "I need to find a way to take it down quickly, or Venusaur will be done for... and I'm afraid my other Pokemon won't be able to take on that metallic menace..."

"Heheheee... are you surprised at the Dark Pokemon's power?" a triumphant Demitri exclaimed, his Dark Magneton's Thunderbolt barely missing its opponent. "Thanks to them... Team Vicious will soon take over this world! Did you really think you could oppose us, you deluded fools? I'll be happy to show otherwise! Dark Magneton, use Thunder Wave!"

The magnetic Pokemon screeched and unleashed a low-voltage discharge that travelled through the floor and struck Venusaur's left forepaw, and the Grass / Poison type grunted as the static current froze him in place, making his movements sluggish. His trainer grit her teeth in alarm - now that her Pokemon was paralzed, the odds were stacked pretty heavily against her... but there must surely have been a way to stop Dark Magneton, right? The problem was to find a way in time...

Still affected by Magnet Rise, Dark Magneton, floated towards Venusaur in order to put an end to the battle once and for all... but befre the electric / Steel type could make another move, a strange whistle was heard, and an order rang out!

"Absol! Attack that thing with Superpower!"

A black and white blur dropped on Dark Magneton, striking with claws and a crescent moon shaped blade... and as Demitri jumped up and yelped in surprise, Drew's Absol, surrounded in a white-azure aura, began relentlessly striking at the Electric / Steel type, forcing it against the wall and denting the magnetized iron it was made of! After a few seconds of Dark Magneton vainly trying to defend himself, Absol leapt back just in time to avoid a Thunderbolt... and two more attacks, coming from different directions, struck Dark Magneton out of nowhere!

"Mudkip, use Mud Slap!"

"Treecko... Razor Leaf!"

Max and Hilde's starters struck out with a small wave of mud and a fusillade of razor-sharp leaves. Neither attack did much damage, but they did manage to confuse Dark Magneton and throw it off its game, just buying enough time for another competitor to use an attack!

"Slowbro... stop that Magneton with Psychic!" Soledad's voice exclaimed. As soon as May turned to her back, she was glad to see that Drew, Max, Hilde and Soledad were all there, each one of them flanked by one of their Pokemon... and the greatest surprise of all was seeing that Harley was there as well, joined by his evil-looking Wigglytuff! "Hey, May! You weren't think of keeping all the fun to yourself only, were you?"

"Solledad! Hehehee... I'll admit, I had half a mind to do just that!" the younger girl joked. "And I can see you're all doing well!"

"Yeah, we are. No thanks to you, I might add!" Harley added nastily. "But since we've got a common enemy right now... I guess I might actually deign lending you a hand!"

Hilde sighed. "Is he always this annoying, or only when he just got his butt taken out of the frying pan?"

"You'll get used to him. Eventually." Max said with a shrug. His Ralts was close by, him and Ralts looking at each other in puzzlement... while Demitri could do nothing but glare angrily at his Dark Magneton getting slammed against the wall by Soledad's Slowbro... an unusual choice, considering how elegant her Pokemon used to be.

But what really angered Demitri was seeing a person in particular among his enemies... "Stefan! You accursed betrayer... you backstabbed me and joined my enemies! How dare you show your face to me now? You... are a disgrace for our family! I always knew you were a good for nothing!"

"And even so, you were expecting me to help you?" Stefan bluntly answered, his Mawile standing close by. "You always treated me like a slave or a fool! I never got a compliment or a kind word out of you, ever since we joined Team Vicious... in the end, I understood I couldn't just put up with this, and I needed to wake up, and wake you up!"

Demitri grit his teeth. "What? What are you trying to say?" he shouted. "Dark Magneton, that's enough! Destroy them all with Zap Cannon!"

"Venusaur!" May ordered just in time. "Strike back with Energy Ball!"

The mighty Grass / Poison type made good on the time he had, and fired a glowing sphere of green energy at Dark Magneton, hitting it head-on while it was still stunned from Slowbro's Psychic! This time, the combined power of all those attacks was too much for the Dark Pokemon to take, and it slumped to the floor with a loud clatter of metal against metal... while Harley's Wigglytuff grinned devilishly and, after giving his companions just enough time to plug their ears, started a sing attack that made the room echo with a soft, melodic, relaxing song...

Demitri couldn't cover his ears in time, and could only gape in anger as numbness quickly overcame him, and his eyelids began feeling like lead. In spite of all his efforts, the young Team Vicious executive was soon overcome by the urge to sleep and lied helplessly on the floor, close to his defeated Dark Magneton.

The battle was over... and May sighed in relief as she uncovered her ears and went to check on her Venusaur. Luckily, aside from being a little groggy from paralysis, the Grass / Poison type hadn't taken a great dea of damage from the battle with Dark Magneton, probably also thanks to his Leech Seed restoring some of his energies.

"You alright, Venusaur?" the girl asked. As Venusaur, even though a bit uneasily, nodded, May turned to her friends in order to properly thank them. "Guys... thanks for helping me out! I don't know what I would have done without you! I must thank you too, Harley, you cane through in the end as well. And I need to apologize for what I did to you..."

"Of course you do! I've still got cramps in my joints from all that cold!" Harley muttered, scratching his Wigglytuff behind an ear. The evolved form of Jigglypuff displayed an even larger grin as he nodded in May's direction, agreeing with his trainer.

Something else, however, had caught May's attention now. "Hey, Max... is it just me, or... that is actually the Ralts you had befriended so long ago? It's him, right?" she asked hopefully.

Judging from her younger brother's beaming smile, May understood she had guessed right. "Yep, sis... that's Ralts alright!" he answered. "I couldn't believe it myself for a moment... but then, he showed me that it was true! My friend Ralts... was here, in this secret base, and I knew nothing about it! How ironic..."

"Well, you found each other again. I'm glad for you." Hilde cut to the chase. "But now, we need to get our butts out of here."

Drew nodded. "She's right, you know. The police and a few Officer Jennies will soon be here to put Demitri and his men on the Party Van. Let them handle the rest, we've already done our share!" he said, as the team headed towards the exit...

**oooooooooo**

Just as Drew thought, the police had been quick to come, and was now arresting all the Team Vicious grunts that had failed to get away in time, along with a still-sleeping Demitri. The young executive's Dark Magneton had been captured, in order for it to be thoroughly researched on, so that its condition could be better understood. May and Max, along with the young boy's Ralts and Mudkip, were answering the questions that an Officer Jenny was asking them. The young coordinator had had enough time to get her own clothes back from the Team Vicious hideout, and she was more than happy to put her shirt, her bike shorts, her trainers, and her trdemark bandanna on!

"So... when the other guys managed to free me and cause some ruckus among those guys, May went to their boss and chalenged him to a Pokemon battle! It wasn't easy to defeat him, but she managed it!" Max said. Close to them, Drew, Hilde, Soledad, Harley and Stefan were busy answering the questions asked to them by other policemen, who wanted to know as much as possible about the organization they had sabotaged.

"Hmm, I see... long story short, these people kidnaps expert trainers or coordinators and forces them to work under them. Which explains quite a lot of things..." the blue-haired policewoman said, writing everything down in her notebook. "We'll have to investigate the matter more thoroughly... but we are still grateful for aiding us. Without your contribution, we'd still be stuck."

"No problem at all. In fact, I'm relieved that everything turned up okay, and Max and his friends are safe." May answered. Just then, the chestnut-haired girl turned to the other officers... and her smile faded when she saw that a policeman was taking Stefan into custody as well, and the latter wasn't doing anything to oppose that. Even Drew, Soledad and Hilde were just standing there and not saying anything, even though they were clearly not happy about that. "What? Hold... hold on a second, Officer Jenny, why are you arresting Stefan as well? He... he helped us take down this Team Vicious cell, and he was only working for them because he was being exploited."

"It's true! We would never have done it without him!" Max added.

Jenny sighed. That was exactly what she expected to hear... "I understand your way of thinking, kids... but the law doesn't work that way, I'm afraid." she explained. "The fact that he jumped ship on those guys doesn't take away the fact that he was still working for Team Vicious in several illegal operations, which is something we cannot just ignore. And it's not just that... I'm afraid to say, May, that by kidnapping Harley, you've been an accomplice as well. Therefore, we'll have to question you as well."

May widened her eyes for a moment, but then accepted the idea and smiled in resignation... only for Max to start opposing that! "WHAT? Hold... hold on a second, Officer Jenny! My sister is innocent here!" he exclaimed. He wasn't about to find a friend again, only to lose a sister! "She was being forced into it! Team Vicious was holding me hostage, and..."

Gently but firmly, May told his brother not to fret over that. "Max... Officer Jenny is right, I did work for those evil people." she said gloomily. "It is only right that I get punished for it, and the fact that I was doing it to protect you doesn't mean I'm innocent."

"But... sis..." Max tried to protest, only for Hilde to put an hand on his shoulders in order to tell him not to fret over that. The glasses-wearing boy turned to his rival and friend, who closed her eyes and wordlessly shook her head.

Luckily, Jenny herself tried to lift everybody's spirits. "Still, May and Stefan have some extenuating circumstances working for them." she stated. "And since you're their friends, your word will surely help."

"Hey! Hold on a second!" Harley exclaimed. "Who ever said I'm a friend of theirs?"

"Their testimony will be invaluable is letting you guys off the hook!" Jenny concluded, with Drew, Hilde, Soledad and Harley gathering around. Though Harley was not exactly happy about helping May, he once again found himself unable to say no to Soledad, who had asked him to put a good word for the young coordinator. "So, if you would kindly come with me... the faster we get rid of the formalities, the better."

"Thanks, Officer Jenny. We really appreciate it." Drew answered, his demeanor as calm as ever. Then, the green-haired lad turned to May and winked at her. "Don't worry, I'm sure it will all work out for the better! They won't be able to deny that you did a good share of the work in taking down Team Vicious, and I can testify for you anyway!"

May smiled, blushing a little as she turned to Drew. "Thanks, Drew! I really appreciate what you've done for me... and I'm sorry about putting you in trouble!"

"No problem at all..." the green-haired boy answered as he gently took May's hand while they walked after Agent Jenny! The girl felt her heart stop for a split second and tried to look elsewhere, but she did squeeze back some...

"Well, Ralts... there is not much we can do at this point." Max said to his Pokemon friend. "My sister will have to answer some questions, and I'd better go with her. We'll celebrate our reunion later though!"

The small Psychic type seemed to understand and nodded slowly, while at the same time hugging Max with his short arms. Smiling, Max hugged him back, happy about having found his friend again...

"Well, I guess all's well that ends well." Hilde stated, giving Max one of her rare smiles. "We are safe for now... but I'm sure we haven't heard the last of Team Vicious."

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	44. Back to Pallet

**Pokemon Heart Soul Adventures**

**Chapter 42 - Back To Pallet**

"So, you will have to stay here, right, Stefan? No chance for the police to look the other way for this one, I guess..." May asked, feeling sincerely sorry for the turncoat Team Vicious grunt. Dressed in his civilian attire, the same one May and Max had seen him in on the day where he and Max had faced off against each other in a friendly match, the young trainer was sitting in a chair in Dewford Town's police department... the same town where Max and Hilde were soon to have their next Gym battle. Stefan had just revealed that the police had decided to keep him in, partly because it was admittedly true that he had helped Team Vicious in their plans, and partly because he had some useful informations about the evil organization's structure and the identity of its higher-ups.

"Yeah. I'm afraid it can't really be helped, guys." Stefan answered with a sigh. "And to be honest, I kinda regret it. I would have liked to travel Hoenn and compete in the League. But... I do have to make up for what I did while I was working under my brother, and help the police take down the rest of the team, so I need to hang around here and tell them what I know. But... as soon as Team Vicious is taken out, I'm sure I will be able to start my Pokemon journey myself! If my brother hadn't forced me to stay by his side, I really would have loved to travel from one place to the other, catching Pokemon and making friends with them. Still, as soon as I can, I'll get a starter and... well, let's just say that will be the perfect day for us to meet again!"

"Yeah, and we will challenge each other again!" Max affirmed. "I do owe you a rematch, after all..."

"That's true..." Stefan chuckled, enjoying the feeling of freedom he was experiencing now that his brother couldn't hold any more sway over him. "And I will gladly accept your challenge, Max... by the way, I still need to apologize for having deceived you... and for letting you fall in my brother's trap. I... took advantage of the faith you had in me, and I caused a lot of problems to you."

Hilde shrugged nonchalantly. "I haven't exactly forgiven you for that, but what's done is done, I guess. I'll be content with your apology." she stated. "And if things are indeed like you said, and you'll have to stay in custody, so to speak... then I guess there's not much we can do to change that, is it? We can't do much else than give you our best wishes for the future."

"Hey, wait a sec, Hilde!" Max exclaimed, holding his friendly rival by the shoulder. "Are you serious about it? I mean, are you actually saying that we should let him on his own, without even giving him a chance to experience some freedom? I... don't think that's right..."

"And what are we supposed to do, Max? Can you explain?" the short-haired girl answered impassively. "Even if he did help us, he also worked for criminals. Sure, he had reasons to do so, but we cannot ignore what he did just because he helped us. The law is the law still."

"Er..." Max tried to retort to that, but he quickly realized that he had no real answer to that. There really wasn't much to do... "Yeah... I understand that, but... darn, I would like to do something. After all, it really wasn't his fault if his brother was forcing him to go along..."

"You're right, and I understand what you're saying, Max..." Soledad went on. "Still... even though I do feel sorry for him, we can't make an exception for him just because he's a friend of ours. Besides, he did hand himself over of his own will, and he's still a minor, so they are going to show him some lenience. For now... the best thing we can do is wish him good luck and tell him that we're going to see each other soon, don't you think so as well?"

After thinking about it for a moment, Max convinced himself that the elegant Pewter City native had a point, and sighed, regarding Stefan with an understanding glance. "If that is the case... then all I can say is, good luck to you, Stefan!" the glasses-wearing boy answered. "And like we said, we hope we can see you again soon! Thank you very much for all you did for us."

"Yeah, same goes for me." May went on. "Thank you very much. We would never have managed to defeat Demitri if it hadn't been for you. You allowed me to save my brother... and see some of my friends again. I would probably still be forced to work for your brother, had it not been for your help, so... thanks again, and see you soon!"

"Thanks, May... and thanks to all of you for believing in me." Stefan answered. "Good luck for the rest of your journey... and see you later, friends!"

"See you!" Drew answered, giving him a thumbs-up. After waving goodbye to Stefan and Officer Jenny one last time, May, Max and the rest of their team walked away from the police station and into Dewford Town's main square. Life was going on just as usual in the seaside town, and it was unbelievable to think that, only a few hours before and not far away from there, a great battle with the agents of a criminal organization had taken place. Slowly, the young trainers reached the center of the square, talking to each other.

"Well then..." Drew affirmed, taking a look at the sky covered in white clouds. "Looks like we've got a problem solved, at least for now. So, what are you going to do now? I guess you'll continue your journey, right?"

"Yeah, but we also need to discover something more about this Team Vicious." Max answered. "They surely are a dangerous organization, and I wouldn't be surprised if they had a much more complex plan in mind."

Harley shrugged. "Well, you do whatever you want, if you are willing to risk your neck. I will go back to my training. And wen we meet again at the next competition, my dear May, I will be sure to defeat you! Don't think I have forgiven you for dissing my cookies just because you got me out of trouble."

May chuckled goofily. "Yeah, I was expecting you to say that..." she answered, while Soledad chuckled to herself and shook her head. Harley was always the same, after all...

"Okay, then I'll return to my training as well." the elegant Pewter City girl went on. "But I'll keep an eye out for those people still. I am sure they're cooking up something nasty. Should you need my help, kids, don't hesitate and let me know. I'll be here on the double!"

"Alright, Soledad! Same goes for us!" Drew answered with a nod. "I think I'll be doing the same thing myself. Train my Pokemon and take care of what those scoundrels will do. We haven't seen the last of them, that's for sure."

Soledad nodded, then called her Pidgeot and climbed on his back. "Alright, then. Good luck to all of you, and see you soon! Okay, Pidgeot, we can take off!"

"See you next time, Soledad!" Harley answered with a wink.

"_Pidgeot!_" the giant pigeon answered, majestically spreading his wings and taking off to their next destination. Max, May, Drew, Hilde and Harley followed them until Soledad and Pidgeot were no longer visible. Finally, with a shrug, Harley put his own backpack on his shoulders and started to walk away himself.

"That's about it, I guess. I just hope I won't meet those weirdoes on my way again." he stated. "And about you, my dearest May... let's just say that since you've gotten me in trouble and then out of it, we're even for now. See you at the next competition, which I will win, by the way! Ciao for now!"

"Yeah. Until next time, Harley. And don't take me for granted, or you might have another thing coming!" May said with a cunning smile, before turning to the rest of the team. "Alright... so, I guess you're going to go on your way too, huh, Drew?"

"I guess so." the green-haired boy answered. "I'd just like to leave you with a little present, if that is okay."

May blinked, wondering what he meant by that... and then widened her eyes when Drew, keeping his trademark debonair attitude, produced a red rose from who-knows-where and handed it to her. "See you soon, May, and hopefully under better circumstances. Try not to get in trouble like you always do, okay? And goodbye!"

"Ah... Er... Good luck to you too, Drew..." May answered, stammering a little while her face took on a slight red tint! Already on his way, Drew lifted a hand and waved, his head turning back just a little... and soon enough, even the green-haired pre-teen disappeared, on his way to a new adventure.

May shook herself out of her stupor only when her brother got in front of her and began waving a hand in front of her face, causing her to wake up with a start. "Hey, sis! Earth calling May, please answer, May!" Max said sarcastically. "Sis, I can understand you losing yourself looking at your boyfriend and all, but I think we'd better get going too. It's getting kinda late, you know."

"Ugh... just so you know, little brother, Drew is NOT my boyfriend!" May exclaimed, wih a comically angered expression on her face. "He's just a friend who takes part in Pokemon competitions alongside me... but that means nothing at all, okay? So stop trying to imply things, right?"

Hilde shrugged. "A full-out crush. The symptoms are all there." she said nonchalantl. As May's face went from red to violet in embarassment, Hilde took a look at the Pokeballs she had just recovered, in order to make sure none of them was missing. "Jokes aside, since we're in Dewford Town, I guess the next thing to do would be to challenge Brawly, the Gym Leader, right? We did do some training while we were in Team Vicious' hideout, but I don't think it will be enough."

"Well, if you don't mind, we could train together for a few days, and then try to take on the Gym! What about that, sis? I think it would be a great idea!" Max ventured, asking his older sister, who quickly hid her rose behind her back. The bandanna-wearing girl cleared her throat, trying to cough her embarassment away before giving an answer to that.

"Training together could give great results, in fact..." May stated. "That's a good way to learn from each other... and you'd also come across as better in Brawly's eyes! I warn you though, his Fighting-type Pokemon are pretty tough. You remember that, Max, don't you? Ash couldn't win the first time."

"Yeah, I remember that..." the young boy stated, knowing just how strong Brawly's Machop and Hariyama were. How ironic, that was the same kind of Pokemon his sister and her Blaziken had faced in Demitri's lair... "But I'm sure that there is a good strategy for every obstacle! Hilde and I will pull out all the stops, and we'll make sure everything goes right! After all, I do have my Ralts with me!"

Max's Pokeball snapped open, and the small Psychic-type came out of it with a joyous call, placing himself on his human friend's shoulder and raising a short arm in excitement... and Max smiled and petted his friend on the head, once again promising to himself that he would try to be the best trainer he could be for him.

!I'm glad we could meet each other again, Ralts..." Max affirmed. "And we'll face this Gym challenge together! I'm sure it will be a snap!"

"_Ralts, ralts!_" the small Psychic-type agreed, with May nodding in approval at her brother starting out with the right foot. Hilde, for her part, was busying herself with other thoughts not relative to the training.

"_For all that he's proud of being strategic and rational, Max sure can be sentimental._" she thought. "_I'm not that sugarry sweet with my own Pokemon, to be honest. But I guess this is just my way of training, and Max has his own. Whatever the case, I sure hope Max's method is as effective as mine. If he'd going to be my rival, I'd rather face him on even terms._"

May motioned for her younger companions to follow her as they began looking for a restaurant and a hotel to spend the night in. Now that they had managed to put Team Vicious behind them, at least for a while, it was time to get back to training and catch up...

**oooooooooo **

"And with that, I guess we can say this part of the whole mess is wrapped up... even though, admittedly, what we achieved wasn't really that much." Lance admitted with a hint of annoyance, after making a resume of how the expedition in the Sevii Islands had gone. Lance, Lorelei, Miyu and Homura were giving their last greetings to Ash's team before they had to go back to the Kanto League's HQ on Indigo Plateau, and two of the young dragon tamer's strongest Pokemon, his Aerodactyl and his Dragonite, were already out and ready to carry the two Elite Four and the two future Sevii Gym Leaders. "For now, we have at least achieved the objective of securing the Sapphire, but we are trying to find Team Vicious' hideout as well, and locate the Deoxys that was captured by the organization. We trust that our efforts will soon bear fruit."

"That's what I hope myself..." Ash affirmed, the ever-present Pikachu perched on his right shoulder. The electric mouse had taken care of where he placed himself, in order not to put pressure on Ash's still-healing arm, which was in a cast and sling. "As for us, well, Dawn should be discharged from the hospital tomorrow. We'll take the ferry frm Quest Island and go back to Pallet, where we will stay a few days... and we'll think of what we should do as our next move."

"Sounds sensible to me." Homura stated, using his hand to comb back his firey red hair. "Well then, good luck for your return, and we hope to be able to give you good news soon. And as for you and your friend... get well soon, and don't overdo it, okay?"

"Oh, don't worry about that, Homura, I can say for certain that nothing can hold Ash back for long!" Misty chuckled, lightly patting her first ever travelling companion on the back. "Anyway, we were glad we were able to help!"

"And we are grateful for your help." Lorelei stated, adjusting her glasses. "I trust we'll be able to meet again soon and give you better news soon. Best of luck to you until then!"

"Thank you very much... and thank you for answering my questions about my Gible, Lance!" Brock thanked the young dragon tamer, who was just then climbing on his Dragonite's back along with Lorelei. Miyu and Homura, for their part, had climbed on Aerodactyl's back, and the mighty prehistoric reptile was just about ready to take flight. "I will try and train him so he can have control over his Draco Meteor!"

"Well, we need to thank you as well. You are strong, and I think your aid will be very important when we'll face Team Vicious later on." Miyu answered. "See you soon, then."

"And, Gary Oak... give our regards to your grandfather for us when you see him." Lance concluded, addressing Gary as his Dragonite flew up. The young trainers waved to the departing Elite Four and Gym Leaders, before they went on their way back to the Kanto League HQ.

"I will, Lance. See you soon!" Gary answered.

"It was a honor, and a pleasure!" Ursula exclaimed.

"_Pika pika!_" Pikachu joined the goodbyes, waving at Lance and the others with both arms until the two Elite and the two Gym Leaders were nothing but a dot on the horizon.

"Oh, well. I guess that's it for now." Brock sighed. "I think we'd better pack up and get ready to depart. We'll have to wake up early tomorrow, in order to board the ferry to Kanto. We don't want to be late."

Ursula nodded. "Right. Oh, and by the way, where's Dee-Dee? I didn't see her around." she said. In fact, the blue-haired girl wasn't with Ash's group when they had gone to see Lance and the others away...

"Dawn had already said her goodbies to them before." Misty answered, motioning to the entrance of the hospital. "Now she's calling her Mom and her friends, in order to tell them what happened to her and reassure them. I think she should be done with it, but we can go and see just now..."

**oooooooooo**

"WHAT DID YOU SAY HAPPENED TO YOU?" Dawn blinked in surprise as Kenny's frantic face almost occupied the whole window of the video-phone she was calling from. She had tried to break the news to him in a good way... but it hadn't done much to assuage her emotional childhood friend, who immediately started bombarding her with questions. "How did that happen? Did it hurt a lot? How long are you going to be in hospital? And..."

"Whoa! Woah, Kenny, please slow down!" an embarassed Dawn exclaimed. As Kenny brought himself to a halt in his relentless questioning and took a couple deep breaths to cool himself down, Dawn began explaining to him what had happened in Quest Island, and how she and her friends had faced Team Rocket, ending with the accident they had been in when Hunter J had bombed the place. By the time she was done with narrating, Kenny knew everything that had happened to his childhood friend and her companions, and was a little calmer too.

"So, that's pretty much it. I'm being discharged tomorrow." Dawn finished explaining.

"Well, that's good news at least... Sorry, Dee-Dee, as soon as I heard what had happened, I kinda lost it."

The blue-haired girl giggled gently at that. "Yeah, no kidding! But don't worry, I'll be okay. I wish you good luck with the rest of your journey, and I hope we can meet soon!"

"Same to you, Dee-Dee. I'll come and see you as soon as I can!" Kenny answered. "Later!"

The call ended, and Dawn was able to put down the phone, sighing in relief. She saw her friends entering the main hall of the hospital through the main doors, and turned to them, waving with her left hand.

"Are you okay, Dawn?" Ash asked. "Did you do all the calls you needed to do?"

Dawn straightened her back a little and winced before answering. "Ow... and here I thought a wheelchair was kinda easier to sit into... Anyway, yes, I'm almost done, even though it was a little harder than I thought! I mean... when I told my Mom and Kenny about my accident, I had to spend several minutes reassuring them that I wasn't seriously injured. Not that I can blame them, of course... anyway, now I only have to contact Zoey, and after that, I'm done."

"Well, that should be easier." Brock answered. "Zoey isn't the kind of person who loses her cool, so I think you won't have to spend that much time reassuring her."

Dawn smiled, inserting her phone card in the machine once again. "I guess you're right, Ash... it won't be that hard to tell Zoey."

**oooooooooo**

"WHAT DID YOU SAY HAPPENED TO YOU?"

"_Er... ooookay, I stand corrected..._" Dawn thought to herself as she blinked in surprise at Zoey's face occupying the whole call window, eyes wide in dismay and alarm! A split second later, the barrage of question she had been subject to from both her Mom and Kenny assaulted her ears once again!

"You're in hospital? How did it happen? It is serious? How long are you going to stay? There are no complications, are there? And..."

"Whoa! Please, hold on a sec, Zoey! At least try to breathe!" Dawn tried to calm her down, frantically waving her hands in front of herself. And here she thought Zoey was going to be a little more calm about it... that was the first time Dawn had ever seen the red-haired coordinator lose her cool, even for just a brief moment. Luckily, Zoey seemed to hold herself back together a moment later and blinked twice, getting away from the screen enough so that Dawn could see her normally.

"Er... right, Dawn, my apologies. I was kinda overwhelmed and all. Calming down now." the redhead answered, clearing her voice and returning to her usual level-headed behaviour. "Okay... now you can tell me, what happened there? How did you break your legs?"

"Well, it's kind of a long story, but Team Rocket has something to do with it... apprently, there are two organizations fighting each other for supremacy..." the blue-haired pre-teen answered. "Anyway... basically, we were escaping from a collapsing hideout... and while I was separated from the others, I had to jump down a cliff to avoid a falling boulder. But I took a bigger fall than I expected. It was about thirty feet to the bottom..."

"Yeah, I understand..." Zoey sighed. "It was one heck of a jump alright. Two broken legs is getting away with little. Still, it's a pain in the neck. I'm afraid you won't be able to take part in Pokemon competitions until you're healed."

Dawn smiled slightly and rubbed the white plaster casts encasing her legs. "True, but I guess it can't be helped. At least, the doctors said it shouldn't take that long for me to be on my feet again. The breaks weren't too serious, after all. And I'll take advantage of this period to train my Pokemon a little more. And it's not all bad news, after all. Do you remember Ursula, that rich girl I faced in the Grand Festival quarter finals?"

"Of course I remember her." Zoey answered. "Not exactly the nicest girl in the world, from what I could see."

Dawn giggled again, admitting that her best friend had a good point about that. "Well... you're right, Zoey, Ursula wasn't exactly that nice. But... now that we have had time to spend with each other, I could see that she isn't that bad either. She even helped me when I got hurt... even though I'm sure she'd never want to admit it!"

A little further away, Ursula felt a familiar vein pop up on her forehead, as well as a familiar feeling of annoyance, as she listened to when Dawn was saying. The fact that she and Zoey shared a short, jovial laugh a moment later didn't help.

"I see. Well, good to know, so that girl isn't as bad as she likes to pretend." Zoey answered. "Well... what do you plan to do now? I'm willing to guess you're going to go back to Pallet Town for some rest and recuperation, am I correct?"

"Exactly." Dawn answered. "Mrs. Ketchum, Ash's Mom, already knows about what happened, and she was willing to have me until I can take the casts off... in the meantime, we'll try and see what we can do to get to the bottom of the plans of both Team Vicious and Team Rocket. There are still quite a lot of things that need to be clarified."

"Well, Dawn, I need to do some research on Team Vicious myself." Zoey said. "I'm afraid the whle issue will be going through some more twists andturns, before we can officially put an end to it. Alright, Dawn, see you soon! Take care of yourself, and have a speedy recovery!"

"Thanks, Zoey... see you around!" Dawn concluded, and the two best friends waved to each other and concluded the call. Dawn extracted the phone card from the phone and took a look at the screen, seeing that the money had almost run out already. Well, it wasn't important, she had done all the calls she needed to do anyway. All that was left to do was get back to her room and start packing her things for the next day. Placing the phone back in place, the bluenette turned her wheelchair towards the rest of her friends, who walked up to her, and Misty offered to carry her to her room.

"Wait, Dawn, I think it would be less tiring for you if we were to carry you to your room." Misty said, reaching her friend from Sinnoh and grabbing the holds of the wheelchair.

"Thanks, Misty, I really appreciate it!" the blue-haired girl answered. "By the way... Lance and the other have already gone away, haven't they?"

"Yeah... they wanted to do some research on Team Rocket and that strange Sapphire we found on Chrono Island." Gary answered. "They told us they were going to keep us updated on what happens later on."

"Well, I guess that's it, at least for now..." Ursula answered, trying to look unconcerned. "Time to start packing our things and get ready to go. Darn, to think we ended up in this craziness because I wanted to train my Pokemon elsewhere..."

"Well, can't say I disliked Sevii Islands, all things considered." Ash commented, looking out of the window towards the setting sun. For a moment, the young bo thought he could catch a glimpse of Lance's Aerodactyl and Dragonite, and he mentally wished the best to the young Kanto Champion and his comrades, hoping he was going to see them again soon.

"_Pika pi, pika pikachu!_" Pikachu said in a reassuring tone, and Ash winked and smiled at his diminutive best friend.

"You're right, Pikachu... as soon as this is over, we'll have all the time we went to return here, possibly along with our friends!" he said, casting a glance at Misty, Brock and Ursula. The latter turned away, appearing indifferent to the idea, but Misty and Brock nodded approvingly.

"I'd be the first to like the idea, Ash!" the redheaded former Gym Leader answered. "After all, if it wasn't for me, you'd end up getting in some other kind of trouble. Which you seem to be good at doing even with me around." She chuckled sarcastically, to which Ash had an unusually quick response.

"Hehehee... what to say, Misty, it's called... the call to adventure!" the young Champion in the making quickly answered, with Pikachu approving in full.

"_Pikachu!_"

"Ugh... What did I ever do to deserve being stuck with this bunch of crazies?" Ursula asked herself, rubbing her forehead to keep her migraine at bay. After chuckling a little, Ash turned his eyes to the outside and smiled, thinking he would miss this place...

"Goodbye, Sevii Islands..."

**oooooooooo**

The next day, in the late hours of the afternoon, a ferry from Cinnabar Island had moored into the small bay of Pallet Town, bringing the small team of young adventurers that had departed no more than two weeks before. Puffing out some white smoke, the ship's engines turned off and allowed its passengers to disembark and get down on the land, where their friends and families were waiting for them... and along them was Delia Ketchum, who was looking intently at the people disembarking. Luckily, she did not have to wait that long before a familiar yellow-furred and black-eared mouse with red cheeks, followed by the white and red cap belonging to the young boy with messy back hair and his left arm in a sling showed up. His injury did not seem to have slowed Ash down any, and both he and Pikachu were carrying themselves with confidence and a bit of pride.

"Ash, Pikachu!" Delia called them while waving at them. The young trainer and his best friend immediately saw her, and after motioning for their friends to come, they disembarked from the ship and ran to Mrs. Ketchum's outstretched arms.

"Mom! I'm so glad to see you!" Ash affectionately exclaimed, hugging her with his still-usable arm.

"Hehee, that was the bare minimum I could do for my baby boy! You've gotten through all those perils in Sevii Islands, and it was only fair thatI came to pick you up! Not to mention, all the surprises that are waiting for you in Pallet!" Delia answered. "By the way, what about your arm, sweetheart? It doesn't hurt any more, does it?"

Ash chuckled goofily as he looked at his casted arm, hanging in a sling. "Hehehee... don't worry, Mom... it's not that bad, at least right now. Dawn sure got it worse than I did."

"I can see that..." Delia stated, looking at the rest of the disembarking people. The rest of Ash's group of friends, joined by an elegant pre-teen girl, not much older than eleven or twelve, with peach-colored haired tied in a pair of drill-shaped pigtails at the sides of her head, and a somewhat haughty expression on her face. "Oh, there you are, children! And I can see you're in good company! Misty, Brock, Gary... welcome back, all of you! Dawn, dear, I'm sorry for what happened to you..."

"Thank you, Mrs. Ketchum... we're happy to be back too!" Brock answered. "Some of us are a little bruised, but we're none the worse for wear."

"It's not that bad, Mrs. Ketchum!" Dawn answered as she wheeled herself to Delia, a blanket covering her plastered legs. "It was an unfortunate accident, but it's nothing that can't be set. Nurse Joy told me it's going to take around a month, but I'm not going to have problems after I'm healed! Oh, and by the way... the girl here with us has been one of my adversaries in the Sinnoh Grand Festival. We met her by chance during our journey in Sevii Islands..."

Ursula stepped forward and bowed politely, if with some detachment, to the young mother. "That's right, Ms. Ketchum. My name is Ursula, and I'm twelve years old. I met your son, Dawn and their companions at Floe Island, when they rescued me after I was kidnapped by Team Rocket. From then on, I joined them to help them and repay them for their help... and I guess I'll be sticking around for a while, until we can solve this mystery."

"Pleased to meet you, Ursula dear." Mrs. Ketchum said with a bow of her own. "As I said once, my son's friends are my friends as well. So, since you're a friend of Dawn's... please, don't be shy and ask me anything you might want! I'll do my best to make sure your stay in Kanto is pleasant!"

Ursula frowned in puzzlement. "Er... actually, Mrs. Ketchum, Dawn and I aren't really..." she started to say, but stopped herself when she realized that Delia was just too enthusiastic to care about the fact that Ursula still had her problems with Dawn. Problems that, Ursula had to admit, weren't quite as serious anymore. "Anyway... my pleasure, Mrs. Ketchum, and I hope I am not too much of a disturbance..."

"No problem, dear! In fact, I'm happy that you're all going to be alright! Come on, children, let's get going! We have a bit of road to cover before we get to Pallet Town!" Delia answered, starting to push Dawn's wheelchair so that the girl would not get tired pushing it. "And while we're going, you can tell me about what happened in your journey, okay? I'm really curious to know!"

Misty giggled. "Hehehee... we did see a lot of great things! But we should start from the first island, Knot Island. It was an uphill start, to say the least."

"Well... come to think of it, I am curious to know about it too." Ursula said, as the team began walking away from the harbor. "I heard there was quite a ruckus there too... and you told me you have faced Team Vicious there... but we never had the time to sit down and talk about it."

"It's no surprise, with all the back and forth we had to do." Brock answered. "But we have all the time we want now. Well, it all started when we got to Knot Island, with the ferry from Cinnabar Island..."

As the team walked towards Pallet Town, Ash and his friends started narrating all that had happened, leaving nothing out...

...

...

And in fact, just half an hour later, the team had reached the outskirts of Pallet Town, the tale had barely gotten to the third island, where they had rescued Lostelle and the rest of the children from a lonely Hypno. It was such an engrossing tale, that Delia hadn't really realized how much they had been walking, until now that the first houses were being seen, and she was feeling somewhat tired from all the walking. Finally, the team reached the main square, where several people were reunited to greet the local heroes, back from a difficult endeavor.

The walk to Professor Oak's lab was brief from there, and when Delia knocked at his door, the old wise scientist wasted no time in opening to his friends and his young grandson.

"Yo, Gramps!" Gary greeted him first, with a jovial gesture. "About time we came back, huh?"

"Oh, good to see you again, my friends!" the world-famous researcher exclaimed joyfully, opening the door to the lab that had become a second home to him. "Glad to see you all here, even though some of you is a little banged up... and I'm glad everything went alright in the end! Lance and Lorelei have already contacted me to tell me about those three mysterious jewels, and I can already tell you not to worry. Team Rocket can't do anything if they don't have all three of them."

"Thank you very much, professor... but we weren't really that worried about it, anyway." Misty answered. "Rather, we're a little worried about those Team Vicious guys. They did manage to get their hands on a Pokemon sealed under Quest Island. A Deoxys, of all Pokemon..."

"Yes, I heard about that too." Oak answered, his mood taking a bit of a plunge. "But even though this is rather worrying news, we can at least wait a little before talking about that. For now, I think it's only fair that you get rested and enjoy some days of peace and quiet. And about that, Dawn... there's someone wanting to greet you as well!"

The blue-haired girl blinked in surprise... and Delia winked at her. "Well, Dawn... I did tell you that there was a surprise for you, as soon as we got home! Someone... has come here to greet you!"

"What...?" Dawn started to ask, looking to one of the lab dorrs that had opened up just then, allowing a familiar blue-haired woman to walk in! "Mom! Mom, is that you?"

"Dawn, my little girl..." Johanna said, hurrying to her daughter and hugging her for all she was worth, with Dawn hugging her back immediately. "Sweetheart, you have no idea how scared I was when I heard what had happened to you! I'm so happy to see you again!"

"Me too, Mom... to be honest, I was quite afraid myself..." Dawn answered, with the rest of the team backing away in order to leave mother and daughter their personal space. However, much to everybody's surprise, they could see that Johanna was hardly the only person from Sinnoh to show up! Right after her, two people unfamiliar to Misty walked in - a tall girl with short red hair, looking like she was in her early teens, and a young boy the same age as Dawn, with messy marroon hair. Both of them quickly walked up to Dawn to greet her.

"Zoey! Kenny!" Dawn exclaimed, seeing her best friends arriving. "Boy, am I happy to see you guys! I never thought you'd get here from Sinnoh so quickly! How did you do it?"

"Well... let's just say we got moving as soon as we heard about your accident, Dawn. Kenny and I just happened to have the same idea!" Zoey explained. "We arrived a few hours ago, and we got a room in one of the inns around here."

"We were so worried about you, Dee-Dee..." Kenny continued. "I thought I was going to lose it when I heard you had gotten hurt..."

Dawn sweatdropped in awkwardness. "_Well, yeah, I kinda saw that... and Zoey was no slouch in that department as well..._" she thought to herself. "Well... as I already told you, it's nothing really serious! I mean, sure I'll have to use this wheelchair for a while, and I won't be able to take part in contests during that time... but I'll be okay."

The blue-haired girl pulled away the blanket covering her legs, showing her leg casts as if they were battle scars she was proud of. Zoey winced in sympathy pain, while Kenny gently held Dawn's shoulder. "Still, we're sorry this haooened to you... and until you've gotten better, we'll do our best to help you!" the young boy answered. "After all, we do have to do our part, don't we? And by the way, why is Ursula here?"

Kenny glared at Dawn' rival, who didn't even move and glared back at him... but luckily, Brock intervened before there could be an argument. "Don't worry... Ursula had been kidnapped by Team Rocket, and we rescued her during our journey through Sevii Islands!" he explained. "She has helped us ever since, even when Dawn got injured. Her Gabite managed to break through a barricade of rocks and allowed us to get out of the cave we were trapped in."

"Let's just say that our goals just happened to be one and the same." Ursula answered, trying to keep some distance from Zoey and Kenny. Aside from the fact that she didn't know them very well, there seemed to be a silent enmity between her and Dawn's friends.

"Well, whatever you say." Zoey finally said with a shrug. "But do not try to do anything against Dawn, like that time you tried to use Plusle and Minun against her. If you do, you'll have to answer to me. I'm giving you fair warning."

"Crystal clear." Ursula answered with an annoyed sigh. Dawn rubbed her forehead in embarassment, and turned hey eyes to her mom, who could do nothing but shrug impotently, and even Ash and his friends could feel that the mood had gotten somewhat heavy... at least, until Delia proceeded to make things right by clapping her hands and showing a friendly smile!

"Now, now, girls, this is not the time to quarrel!" she said angelically. "Instead, why don't we celebrate the return of Ash and his friends? Of course, my dear Johanna, the invitation is for you as well! Don't be shy about it!"

"Now that's a great idea, Mom!" Ash exclaimed, sporting a winning smile! "The worst is over now... let's think about celebrating our reunion!"

"_Pika pikachu!_" Pikachu agreed, with Misty, Brock, Gary and Dawn along as well, helping with the festive atmosphere that was now spreading to everyone. Somewhat taken aback by such spontaneous excitement, Zoey and Kenny tried to back away, but eventually decided that it was a good idea to just enjoy the moment. And while Ursula tried to appear indifferent, she had to admit the idea appealed to her as well...

"A nice idea indeed." Professor Oak affirmed. "I'll go tell Tracey about it, he'll be happy to take part in it!"

Oak motioned from them to wait a moment and went out of the main door, searching for his most trusted aide, while Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu and Delia immediately started preparing, causing the newcomers to blink in puzzlement. "Er... say, Dee-Dee... is that how they do things, in this city? It looks like they throw a celebration as soon as a stranger comes..."

"That's just the way they do it, Kenny!" Daw answered with a smile. "I'm sure you'll get used to it as well!"

**oooooooooo**

Elsewhere, in the mysterious Johto continent...

Meowth smiled cunningly as he watched their latest target with a binocular, safely hidden in his and his friends' hot air balloon that had become a trademark for Jessie and James wherever they went. Even now that they were no longer part of Team Rocket, that balloon was pretty much a part of their habits, and in any case, they doubted they could afford another one.

Their targets, right now, were a group of people dressed in a manner similar to a Team Rocket agent, only they were wearing gas masks on their faces, and the R drawn on their chests was mirrored. Jessie and James, who were standing right behind Meowth, were curious to see what Meowth had discovered, asking him about his latest finding.

"We've got something interesting in the bag this time, guys... get ready, 'cuz we're going to have to do a pretty good job this time!" the feline Pokemon answered with a wily grin. "I think we've stumbled into something big this time, and if we do things well enough... well, let's just say getting out of Team Rocket might be the best thing that ever happened to us!"

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	45. Team Rocket Springs To Action!

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Chapter 43 - Team Rocket Springs To Action!**

"Hmm... so, those Team Vicious guys have set up a camp near here, huh?" Jessie murmured astutely, rubbing her chin while James tried to direct their hot air balloon out of sight of their former organization's rivals. "This can only mean one thing, they're looking for something interesting around there! If we can throw a snapper in their works, we can get back at them for what they did to us back at Sevii Islands! What do you say, guys, you like the idea?"

"Of course we do, Jessie... but I'd suggest we be careful about it..." James suggested. "Meowth, could you see how many were there?"

The feline Pokemon shrugged nonchalantly. "Ten, twelve tops. They sure have numbers on their side, but if we can catch them off guard, we can take them down no problem and take their camp for ourselves! And about that... trust good ol' Meowth, I already have a perfect plan in mind!"

"I sure hope it's as perfect as you say..." Jessie murmured to herself. "Fine, Meowth, you have our attention... what are we going to do?"

"Let's just say we're doing... a bit of a return to our roots!" Meowth answered with a wink. "Okay, listen up, guys... _whisper whisper_... and then... _whisper whisper_..."

Jessie and James bent a little in order to listen to their Pokemon companion, and when Meowth was done, both raised their heads and looked at each other n determination, convinced that they were going to have their way this time!

"So be it, then! Team Rocket is ready to blast off to glory!" Jessie exclaimed. "C'mon, everyone, let's do this!"

The young woman placed a hand in front of herself, and both James and Meowth placed their own hands upon hers, in a gesture of accordance! "Well said, Jessie! We're not getting blasted away this time!"

"Let's get to it, people! It's going to be one for the history books!" Meowth concluded.

**oooooooooo**

A few moments later, in a lone camp set up by a bunch of Team Vicious grunts...

"Yaaaawn! Man, this job is really the pits... nothing interesting ever happens around here!" a Team Vicious grunt murmured as he stood guard in front of the camp. "I mean, had we set up camp... dunno, in Azalea City or Violet Town, at least there would have been something to watch."

"Like what? Like an unstable tower dedicated to a bunch of useless Grass-type Pokemon, or a well infested by the dumbest Pokemon ever?" another masked grunt answered in a deadpan voice. "Bah... in my opinion, the fact that this forest still holds a few pointers about the location of Celebi, the protector of the forest, more than makes up for how dull it can get! Our boss had already tried to seize its power for himself, and had it not been for that bunch of twerps... well, we'd be the rulers of the world already! Now we have a chance of finding something that might point us in Celebi's direction and let the boss make up for that defeat!"

"Alright..." the grunt standing guard answered tiredly. "I just hope we can find this thing soon, wherever it is, and get away from this forest..."

A strange hissing sound reached the grunts' ears, and the two of them glanced up in alarm and got ready to throw their Pokeballs... but they had no time to let their Pokemon out before a strange projectile the size of a small car descended with a penetrating hiss and embedded itself in the ground only a few feet away from them, shaking the ground! The frightened grunts quickly turned to the projectile... and discovered, much to their surprise, that it was a gigantic leek that had planted itself in the ground like some sort of gigantic nail, tossing up a whirlwind of powdered soil and dead leaves!

"Huh? What the heck is that...?" one of the grunt exclaimed, looking at the strange object in surprise... as an ominous shadow loomed upon the improvised camp, forcing all Team Vicious members to glance up in alarm! A strange robot, looking like an overgrown Farfetch'd, with a wingspan of no less than thirty feet, was flying above them... and on board of it, protected by a dome of bulletproof glass that allowed them to look around and down, sat a well-known trio of clumsy outlaws who were nonetheless determined to show what they were really made of!

"Hohohohoooo! So, how'd you like our surprise? From the cunning minds of three former Team Rocket agents, I give you... Farfetch'd X-Wing!" Jessie exclaimed with an high-pitched laugh, grabbing the cloche with enthusiasm. "Bring it on, you jesters! We'll show you what our latest invention is truly made of!"

James and Meowth looked at each other with weirded out expressions. "What des she mean, Farfetch'd X-Wing? This is just a flying robot we concocted together from scrap metal we found here and there... we were a little short on money, after all..." the azure-haired boy murmured.

"Just go along with it, Jamey-boy... you know how Jessie can get, and this name... she just pulled it out of nowhere..." the catlike Pokemon answered. "Fine then... let's not go there, and let's do our thing instead! Time for a few fireworks here, people!"

"Alright, Meowth!" James exclaimed. "First off, let's show them our firepower!"

For a compartment on the robotic Farfetch'd's wings, James' Carnivine aimed and fired a powerful Bullet Seed arrack, spraying Team Vicious below with a seemingly infinite stream of nuts and seeds shot from the carnivorous plant's maw! "Aaaaargh! What on Earth...?" one of the masked criminals exclaimed, vainly attempting to shield himself with his arms from this hail of bullets! "You cowards! This is just cheap! Come down and fight, if you have some guts!"

"Well, well, can you believe it? Criminals asking other criminals to fight fair..." Meowth taunted their enemies. "All of this is so ironic that I don't even know where to begin..."

One of the Team Vicious grunt grabbed one of his Pokeballs, in an attempt to fight back. "Hmph... yeah, go ahead and laugh at us, will you! I'll teach you a lesson you won't ever forget! Come out, Graveler!" the masked grunt exclaimed, sending out a fierce-looking and massive Graveler, who immediately stood on guard and aimed a Rock Slide attack... but he had no time to actually shoot before he was bombarded by Carnivine's seeds, and was forced to retreat under an overwhelming onslaught! His trainer grit his teeth and hid behind a boulder, grumbling to himself about how stupid he was not to think of Graveler's double weakness to Grass...

"You blinking idiot!" another grunt called him out, watchin Gravele hit the ground in a daze. "Do you think a Rock and Ground type can actually stand up to a Grass-type?"

"Ugh... I'm sorry, I acted on impulse!" the unfortunate gruntprotested while at thesame time trying to gain some cover from Carnivine's Bullet Seed. Clearly, the three former members of Team Rocket had no such problem...

"And while those three bicker over what kind of Pokemon is good against a Grass-type, we'll show them that our Pokemon never have this sort of problems!" Jessie commented with a cunning smile. "Seviper, Yanmega, go all out on this one!"

The breathless Carnivine was glad to be able to stop his Bullet Seed attack and catch his breath while Jessie's giant garnet and saber-toothed viper took his place, with Yanmega majestically soaring in the air, and Seviper coiling herself around one of the Farfetch'd X-Wing's talons, glancing down in order to aim her attacks.

"Hmph. You don't think you can bully us with that bucket of scrap metal, do you, you losers?" another Team Vicious grunt replied. With a gesture, he let a Fearow out of his Pokeball, while his companions let out a few more common Pokemon like Bibaret, Raticate or Ariados. The Farfetch'd X-Wing dropped down a little, and a Team Vicious Bibarel chose that exact moment to strike, launching a Water Gun attack on Yanmega. The Ogre Garner buzzed angrily, shaking the water off her wings and body.

"Hey! How dare you treat my beautiful Yanmega like that, you dirty rodent?" Jessie exclaimed. "Show him who you are, Seviper! Use Dark Pulse!"

"_Seviperrrrrr!_" A disquieting black aura surrounded the Poison-type for a moment, before she launched it outwards with a quick movement of her coils! The offending Bibarel could not dodge in time, and was hit and knocked down together with a few Pokemon who were trying to attack the three former Team Rocket members! And when Fearow dived towards Yanmega, trying to take advantage of her momentary stun, the huge dragonfly recovered and fired back one of her best attacks. With a loud buzz, Yanmega unleashed her Ancient Power attack, creating a few luminous rocks from seemingly nowhere all around her body, and launching them at Fearow, who was hit and knocked back!

"Hehehee... don't say we didn't warn ya! You've got nothin' to gain by acting all tough on us!" Meowth grinned proudly... though Team Vicious did not seem to want to give up so easily. One of the grunts, who had just let a Machoke out of his Pokeball, decided it was the right moment to strike back. "Tch! Now, we'll be the ones laughing! Machoke! Bring that thing down with Stone Edge!"

The body-builder Pokemon nodded and swept in front of himself with one of his powerful arms, raising up a powerful wave of razor-sharp stones that flew up towards the Farfetch'd X-Wing and struck it on the side, with enough power to cause it to tip over to one side! One of its wings came too close to the ground for Jessie and James' comfort, and the two had to swerve at the last possible moment, feeling their stomachs almost fly up to their mouths, in order to avoid crashing! Seviper had no choice but to coil herself around the flying vehicle's talon in order to avoid being thrown off!

"Aaaaargh! Now they've really gone and made me mad!" Jessie angrily ranted, a vein popping up on her forehead! "Alright then! You want a war? You got a war! I'm not gonna hold back anymore!"

Needless to say, James and Meowth had no intention of contradicting their fiery companion, who immediately began pressing one button after the other on the console in front of herself. When Jessie was in a bad mood, it was highly advisable to steer clear of her... and she gave ample proof of that when the beak of the Farfetch'd X-Wing opened up, letting out Jessie's Wobbuffet, who had been secured to some sort of retractable bridge, his arms loose by his sides and his black tail slowly wagging behind him... and of course, the usual dopey expression on his face!

The enemy Machoke did not wait for new orders and struck again with another Stone Edge attack... but this time, Jessie's Wobbuffet began glowing in a blue aura, and just as the rocks were only a few feet away from striking, they stopped in midair, remaining suspended in midair, and then returning to the sender like a swarm of missiles, striking him head-on! Jessie immediately perked up at that, and she immediately let out an ear-splitting laugh... much to James and Meowth's chagrin! "Hohohohooooo! Good for you, Wobbuffet! See what happens when you mess with us?"

"Well, it did cost us a couple shattered eardrums, but it was worth it..." Meowth snarked. "We sure get the job done whenever Pikachu and the twerps aren't around!"

"You can say that again, Meowth... maybe this is what we should have done all along!" James answered, rubbing his ears. The Team Vicious grunts seemed to understand that things were looking grim, and rather than stay and fight a losing battle, they began recalling their Pokemon, picking up whatever they could bring, and beat a hasty retreat from Ilex Forest.

"Ugh... darn it all..." one of the masked criminals muttered. "Let's run for it, people! They might be a bunch of buffoons, but we're getting clobbered real good here!"

"The boss won't be happy with this at all..." another one murmured, while all of them picked up whatever they could and ran away. In a few seconds, the camp in the wilderness had been completely abandoned, and the Farfetch'd X-Wing did a smooth acrobatic maneuver, before landing right in the middle of the clearing, allowing Yanmega, Seviper, Carnivine and Wobbuffet to take a breath of relief.

"Phew... now that was quite the rush!" James sighed, wiping some sweat from his forehead while the cockpit opened up with a low metallic screech. "Well... what can I say, we actually won! And now... let's take a look at what they were doing! By the way, congratulations, Meowth! You have had a really wonderful idea!"

The feline Pokemon unfastened his seat belt and leapt down with an agile somersault, then crossed his forepaws on his chest and nodded in fake modesty. "Hehee... well, yeah, I wasn't too shabby! But now... we can think of congratulating ourselves later, we still have a job to do now! I'm sure we can find something about their plans around here..."

"Alright, Meowth, let's start looking..." Jessie answered. The two youngsters and their Pokemo dismounted the makeshift plane, stretched their arms and legs a little, and started searching the deserted camp.

The search was fruitless for a while... but after searching in several tents, finding nothing but a few worthless objects and some canned food - which was a great find, considering how vicariously they were used to living - a more careful look around the place where the squad leader seemed to have been staying revealed that there were two strange greyish-green stones, similar to rough emeralds, and a small notebook upon which were inscribed a few useful notes, particularly on the identity of the Pokemon Team Vicious was looking for.

"Hmm... that's very interesting! What about this, guys? You think anyone could be interested in these stones?" James stated, showing Meowth the bag containing the two stones. The talking cat sneaked a peek inside, and his cunning smile widened until it almost consumed the lower half of his face!

"You bet, Jamie, my old boy!" he exclaimed. "These are Moon Stones, and they are quite rare and valuable! Maybe someone has some Pokemon he could use it on... which means, we can sell them to him for quite a bundle!"

"And what about this notebook? What's written upon it?" Jessie asked, looking over her best friend's shoulder. There was a small picture attached on one of the center pages, showing a small, fairy-like Pokemon with light green skin and dragonfly wings... it was a rather blurred image, so Jessie, James and Meowth had trouble seeing the particulars... but they were sure they had seen such a distinct shape somewhere before...

James rubbed his chin while looking at the pictures. "Hmmm... tell you what, guys, this Pokemon really looks familiar to me." he answered. "I'm sure we've already seen it somewhere, but I can't for the life of me remember where."

Jessie's Yanmega flew over James, distracting him with her buzzing of wings... and her eyes widened even more when she recalled where and when she had caught a glimpse of that particular Pokemon! Using her wings' buzzing to communicate, Yanmega tried to tell the news to Meowth... who luckily seemed to get it!

"Wha... Hold on a sec! Of course! That's where we had seen it! That's Celebi... that Legendary Pokemon the Iron Masked Marauder was after... and the one we had seen in Crown City!" the cat-like Pokemon exclaimed. "In both cases... there was someone gunning for him!"

"What? Oh, crikey, Meowth... now I recognize him!" James exclaimed in surprise. "This is going to get serious, guys... if Team Vicious does want this Pokemon..."

"We are in for a world of trouble!" Jessie concluded with a shiver. Every time that Pokemon was involved, they ended up risking their necks... and that's leaving aside the fact that it was a Pokemon connected with the flow of time, which opened up far too many possibilities for their liking! "Guys... I really don't like this at all! Shouldn't we try and tell someone about these plans as soon as we can? If we let these Team Vicious guys get away with capturing Celebi... we can expect nothing but bad news!"

"You're right... but we need to find someone who would believe us!" James answered as the three of them walked out of the tent and returned to their rudimentary plane. As they walked away, the former Team Rocket agents failed to notice a bunch of documents that had been hidden in a corner of the tent during the battle... and so, they could not read the name that was written on one of the sheets...

GRINGS KODAI

**oooooooooo**

In Kanto, however, things were definitely more quiet for Ash and his team... and in fact, that particular day was shaping up to be quite memorable, since Ash, Pikachu, Misty and Brock were taking a stroll together after so much time, walking towards Viridian Forest. And they weren't alone either, since Ash had had the idea of taking a few of the Pokemon that had remained at Oak's ranch - namely, the leader of the Tauros herd he had captured at Safari Zone, his Muk, his Corphish and his Shiny Noctowl, each one of which was walking - or flying, in the golden owl's case - beside their trainer, enjoying a peaceful day in which no one had to worry about criminal organizations, tournaments, rivals, or anything like that. It was nice to be able to spend a day like that, without anything to interrupt the peace and quiet... and Pikachu was the one who was enjoying it the most, seeing as he was sitting on Tauros' massive back, too small for the mighty bull to even notice his weight!

As he watched Ash, Misty and Brock walking side by side and chatting with each other, Pikachu thought there was some nostalfic feeling about it. It almost seemed like they had gone back in time, when Ash was still a rookie trainer, and Misty and Brock were often forced to take his hand and fuide him through his first battles. Sure, they were older and more experienced now, all of them... but the feeling of the good old times was still there!

"Well, everyone? What do you say? It was such a great day, that it would have been a shame not to take a walk outside and enjoy it!" Ash told his Pokemon, chuckling a little when the rambunctious Corphish began teasing Muk... only to be gently taken aside by a weak Extrasensory attack from Noctowl.

"_Corphish, corp!_" the giant crayfish Pokemon protested, his claws loudly snapping on thin air.

Misty ran a hand through her shining red hair. "Well, I do agree that it's a beautiful day..." she admitted. "But... why this sudden urge to take a walk, Ash? I don't think you had Gyms to face or things to do, so..."

"To be honest, guys... I wanted to go pay a visit to Pidgeot!" the young boy answered, getting somewhat more serious. "It's been too long since I promised him to go visit him, after he found his place... and now, I'd like to at least show him that I want to keep my word! And then... well, let's face it, nothing like walking along with your friends, on such a great day!"

"You're right! It's a pity Dawn couldn't join us, but at least she has Zoey and Kenny with her!" Brock stated. "And we might throw Ursula in as well. You know, it seems to me that those two get along somewhat better."

"_Taur?_" Tauros asked in his curiosity to know what the ever-squinting young man was saying. Pikachu rubbed his head and answered with several screeches in his distinctive language, as if saying he would have explained later. The bull-like Pokemon shrugged in his own way, accepting the electric mouse's explanation, and continued walking along the way... at least until Noctowl stopped in midair, noisily flapping his wings in order to remain suspended, and looked around suspiciously. The rest of the team stopped in alarm as well... and Tauros began sniffing the air, only to turn away in disgust when the overpowering stench coming from Muk reached his sensitive nostrils!

"_Pikachu..._" Pikachu murmured as he sweatdropped. He began looking around just a moment later and perked his ears up, while warning Ash and the others. "_Pika pi! Pika pikachu!_"

"What's the matter, Ash? Is anything wrong?" a wary Misty asked... and, as if on cue, Psyduck popped out of his Pokeball in a stream of white light! "Ugh... nevermind... you're what's wrong, stupid duck!"

"_Psy-ay-ayyyy..._" Psyduck quacked as he turned his head to the left of the team, towards a bush that shook and let out a large bug-like Pokemon looking like a gigantic lavender-colored moth with six thin legs, and three short spikes on its head, as well as a pair of delicate-looking wings, scattering a fine silver dust around the place. It was clearly a Venomoth, a rather common Bug / Poison Pokemon noted for its numerous status-changing attacks and its powerful Psychic-type attacks. Ash, Misty and Brock did not recall many of those living in Viridian Forest or close to it though, which probably meant a trainer was around...

"Ugh... I should have recalled that... sometimes, you run into bad company when you walk in Viridian Forest!" Misty murmured in fear, her dislike of Bug-type Pokemon acting up again. Luckily for her, just when Vanomoth seemed to be about to attack, a voice belonging to an old acquaintance of the team intervened and stopped it.

"Hold on, Venomoth! Those are my friends, don't attack them!" Tracey exclaimed, emerging from the same bush along with his faithful Scyther. The gigantic moth stopped short of releasing its toxic spores in the air, and looked at the young artist with surprise while he and Scyther finished walking out of the vegetation and greeted Ash and the others! "Hey, Ash! Good to see you, guys! You have to excuse my Venomoth, ever since he evolved from a Venonat, he's always been kinda suspicious, every time he hears someone arriving..."

"Ah... hello, Tracey! Don't worry, it's okay..." Misty answered, even though she shivered a little at the sight of the two Bug-type Pokemon. "By the way, what are you doing here? I thought you'd be at Professor Oak's lab to help out..."

As Venomoth flew back to Tracey's side and Scyther nodded to him, the young artist rubbed the back of his head. "Well... to be honest, yes, the day had started out like that, but then we saw the weather forecast... basically, it's supposed to be a very rainy weekend, so Scyther, Venomoth and I have come here to fetch some wood. So, if it becomes necessary to light up a fire, we have the means to do it."

"Yeah, that's understandable." Brock answered. "By the way, Ash... think we have time to stop here and help Tracey out a little?"

Ash took a look at his watch. "Well... I think we can stop for a while and gather son wood as well. So, guys, what do you say?"

Noctowl hooted and nodded his head in assent, and even Pikachu, Muk, Corphish and Tauros seemed to be in agreement, to which Ash grinned and raised his right fist in the air! "Alright! Let's get to it, everyone! Where do we start from?"

"You can start by not overworking yourself, Ash Ketchum, with that arm of yours... need I remind you that you still have three weeks before you take off the plaster?" Misty reminded him, pointing to her friend's casted left arm. Of course, knowing Ash, this was not going to be enough to stop him.

"Heheheee... no worries, Misty, this won't be enough to hold me back! So, Tracey... where can we start?" the young trainer asked.

"Thank you very much, everyone!" the young artist answered, as Scyther and Venomoth began showing the pile of wood they had already gathered to the other trainers. "Alright, we'll show you now... I'm sure this work will be over in a snap with your aid!"

"_Pika pika!_" Pikachu agreed.

**oooooooooo**

In the meanwhile, in Pallet Town, another group of trainers was busy practicing for an activity that was definitely more peaceful than Pokemon battling, but just as exciting nonetheless: Dawn, Kenny, Zoey and even Ursula - regardless of the occasion dirty glance Zoey cast her way every now and then - were thinking up some new tricks to perform with their Pokemon, combining their moves in the most inventive ways. And the river that was running close to the borders of Pallet Town were the perfect place to train their Water-type Pokemon...

Dawn, directing her Piplup and her Togekiss while sitting in her wheelchair, clapped her hands twice, trying out a new idea she had. "Alright, Piplup, Togekiss... let's do it again, okay? It's an idea I had from something Ash told me about once, and I want to see if it works! Togekiss, get ready to use Aura Sphere... and you, Piplup, jump on Togekiss' back before she fires!"

"_Piplup!_" the small penguin-like Pokemon answering, rapidly flapping his small wings as he jumped on Togepi's final evolution back, while she was gliding on the water and circling on the surface. Right after that, the Normal / Flying Pokemon began glowing in a blue aura that formed a magical-looking sphere around her body... and Dawn began waiting for her Togekiss' Aura Sphere to become large enough. Then, she nodded and called for Piplup's move.

"And now, Piplup... usa Aqua Jet!" the bluenette exclaimed. The penguin-like starter let out his shrill call and rushed towards Togekiss, surrounded with an aura of water, which was torn into millions of droplets by the Aura surrounding Togekiss! The droplets sprayed all around the two Pokemon, reflecting all the hues of the rainbow and immersing both Pokemon in a spectacular halo of beautiful colors, leaving their trainer dumbfound! She had expected a spectacular result, to be sure, but this went beyond her most optimistic expectations! "Yay! That was fantastic, guys! This is exactly what I was going for!"

Togekiss shot her Aura Sphere, dragging the water jets created by Piplup for quite a good distance and leaving a trail of rainbow-hued vapor behind it, before the energy sphere burst into a spectacular cloud of colors that hung in the air for a few moments before spectacularly dissipating.

"Wow!" Kennt exclaimed, admiring the result of his childhood friend's latest combination of moves. Both his Alakazam and his Breloom were looking at the same scene with admiration. "That was truly astounding, Dee-Dee! You sure got a lot stronger, since last time we met each other..."

"Thanks, Kenny! Well, to be fair, Ash, Brock and I have been in quite a few Pokemon battles, so... well, I guess it was only to be expected that our Pokemon got quite a bit stronger!" Dawn answered. She turned to Zoey's Lumineon and Glameow, observing the spectacular combination her best friend was putting up - between the feline's agility and Lumineon's graceful movements, the result was not unlike a mesmerizing display of dancing water. And Ursula's Vaporeon and Flareon were doing quite a good job themselves. "Zoey and Ursula sure got a lot better as well..."

"Heheheee... but they're not the only ones to have done so!" the young boy answered, his eyes shining competitively like she was used to seeing whenever he wanted to show off something he had just learned. "I've been training a lot, and I've definitely learned from the mistakes I've committed at the Grand Festival! I thin I've got some tricks that will leave your jaws hanging! Alakazam, Breloom! Let's try our new Shadow Ball and Energy Ball combo!"

"_Breeeeeloom!_"

"_Alaka-zam!_" the mighty Psychic-type Pokemon crossed his spoon in front of himself and concentrated, creating a sphere of rolling shadows.., and Breloom formed a glowing ball of green light, before firing it in perfect synchronization with his companion! The spheres of energy drew a pair of spiralling lines in midair, twisting and turning around each other, and leaving behind two trails of light, one purple and one green! The two attacks flew for several metres, getting close and closer in their spiralling movement... and they finally hit each other in midair, exploding in a blast of fireworks that projected purple and green light everywhere!

"Woooow! That was awesome, Kenny! You and your Pokemon had a pretty good idea!" Dawn answered, causing a prideful smile to appear on the young boy's face.

"You two sure are doing quite a good job!" Zoey commented. "My Pokemon and I better step up our game, or we'll end up falling behind in the next Grand Festival!"

"I don't think you need to worry about that, Zoey!" Kenny affirmed, while he and his Breloom looked at Zoey's Lumineon creating an Aqua Ring in midair, and her Glameow somersaulting through it by combining his Agility and Double Team attacks! The cat-like Pokemon jumped through each and every ring of water Lumineon left behind himself. It felt like watching a group of classical dancers moving in perfect synchrony... and while it wasn't as flamboyant as Dawn and Kenny's combinations, the technique and skill Zoey and her Pokemon put int it more than made up for the lack of visual effects! "If this combination is any indication, we're still going to have trouble catching up to you!"

"Heheee... thanks, but you know me... I'm not the kind of girl who is content with what she can do at the moment." the redhead coordinator answered. "And while my Pokemon have gotten stronger since the Grand Festival, I still haven't gotten what I was looking for. I must still do something more..."

"I see..." Dawn answered, rubbing her forehead. Her Togekiss and her Pilup landed close to her, and the blue-haired pre-teen welcomed them and cuddled them a little. "Hey there, Piplup! Togekiss! I think you deserve some rest now! You did a great job, and we've been training for quite a few hours anyway!"

Togekiss emitted her melodious call in accordance with Dawn, who gently stroke her and Piplup on the head, and then turned to a voice calling her. She was somewhat surprised when she saw Gay arriving, waving to the group of friends from Sinnoh. "Oh, hi, Gary! What's the matter?"

As the rest of the trainers greeted him - even Ursula turned away from her training and nodded to him - Gary nodded and got close to them. "Hope I'm not intruding... Dawn, you have X-rays to do today, right? Gramps suggested you could do them now, so you won't have to think about that anymore."

"Ouch... silly me, I had completely forgotten about that..." the wheelchair-bound girl answered, bopping herself on the head. "Guys, can you continue without me? I'll be back as soon as this is done! We're not going to take long, right, Piplup?"

"_Pip! Lup!_" the penguin-like Pokemon chirped, holding himself close to his trainer as if he wanted to say that he was going to stay with her. He seemed to have gotten the idea that it was going to be some sort of painful ordeal...

"Okay, Dawn, take all the time you need... and get back whenever you can, okay?" Zoey answered. "We'll keep practicing."

"Do what you need to do. Not like I care or anything." Ursula said with a shrug.

Kenny, for his part, went to his childhood friend and held the handles of her wheelchair. "Well, Dee-Dee, hopefully you aren't going to push yourself all the way there, are you?" he asked playfully. "I'm helping you, if you don't mind."

Dawn giggled and blushed a little, feeling flattered that Kenny was so eager to help her. "Well... I was trying to go thereall by myself, but still, thank you, Kenny! That's very nice of you!" she answered, and the two childhood friend began going on their way back to the Pallet Town mainland, chatting between themselves as Kenny gently pushed her wheelchair. The rest of the group, Gary included, stood thereand watched the two happily make their way back to the town, before the young researcher addressed Zoey.

"Those two really get along, don't they?" the young Oak commented. "Well, that sounds obvious, considering they're childhood friends, but still, they seem to have gotten even closer recently."

Zoey shrugged and smiled gently. "If you're pondering what I think you're pondering, I couldn't be happier for them." she answered. "I mean, they have been looking out for each other ever since they were little kids. And they obviously care a lot about each other, so... I'm sure they would be happy if they were to develop their relationship in that direction. Plus, they look cute together, don't they?"

Gary chuckled. "You've got a point here." he stated.

Ursula, for her part, turned a rather annoyed glance at the rest of the team, then sighed and shook her head, turning once again to her Flareon and Vaporeon. "Meh, what does that guy see in that ditz, I'll never know. Guess these are the moments I'm glad I don't have a boyfriend. Romance is not really my forte." she murmured. "Alright... Vaporeon, Flareon, let's get back to our training, right now. We need to find a counter to Dee-Dee's little tricks! Are you ready?"

"_EON!_" the two Eevolutions answered in unison, getting ready for another go...

**oooooooooo**

"Are you okay, Dee-Dee? You don't need me to slow down, do you?" Kenny asked his childhood friend, who was relaxing in the wheelchair he was pushing towards Pallet Town's main square. The blue-haired girl turnd to her childhood friend and winked, in order to tell him she was alright.

"It's okay, Kenny... and thanks for helping me!" she answered. "I have to say, you're quite the gentleman when you aren't calling me by that usual nickname!"

She giggled at the boy's blushing reaction. "W-what... don't say such embarassing things, Dee-Dee! You know that I've been calling you that ever since we were kids!" he stuttered, looking the other way while pushing her wheelchair. "And, well, I'd be doing this for you anyway! That doesn't mean what you think it means! I'd be doing this even if I wasn't... ugh... I mean, since you broke your legs and all, it's only fair that I help you out!"

"Heheheee... it's fine, Kenny, you don't need to explain yourself! I wasn't implying anything anyway!" she giggled, before her tone grew softer and she smiled gently at him. "To be honest, I'm kinda glad we were able to spend some time together, now that we don't have to rush to get to Festivals or anything like that. While it is fun to train Pokemon and think up new combinations of moves, sometimes you need some time to cool down and just spend your time with the people dear to you... you know what I mean?"

"_Piplup!_" the small penguin-like Pokemon agreed from his trainer's lap.

Kenny cleared his throat, searching for an answer to give her... but before he could think something up, he found himself right in front of the Oak Laboratories, where Prof. Oak seemed to be waiting for them. They had enjoyed the trip back to Pallet so much, they hadn't even seen how much of the road they had covered.

"Oh, there you are, Dawn and Kenny!" the kind professor greeted them, walking up to them. "And just in time too. Everything is set up for your X-ray scan, dear. Don't worry, it won't be anything painful nor too long. I just need you to hold still for a while as we take a look at how your bones are doing."

"That's good to know, professor Oak." Dawn answered. "By the way, can Kenny and Piplup stay and watch while I have my examination done? I think they would appreciate it."

"They most certainly can, my dear." Oak said, helping the wheelchair-bound girl and her Piplup in the lab and motioning for her childhood friend to follow. "Come on, Kenny, don't be shy! Your friend would like you to stay with her, you don't want to let her down now, right?"

"I... I'm glad she does, professor, but... er... I don't want to be in the way..." Kenny stuttered a little, causing Piplup to sigh and shake his head, and Dawn to giggle to herself. "Still, if you think it will be okay..."

"Aw, c'mon, Kenny, don't be a scaredy Meowth!" Dawn joked. "I did tell you, didn't I? I would be happy if you came and stayed with us!"

"Okay..." the young boy nervously answered, following his childhood friend in the laboratory...

**oooooooooo**

Tracey wiped some sweat off his forehead, looking at the large heap of wood that he and his friends, with the aid of both Venomoth and Scyther, had piled up. "Well, I guess we are done here! Even if it hailed, we still have enough wood for setting up a few nice fires! My Pokemon and I can bring it back to Pallet no problem, guys, so don't worry about that. I know you have your own things to do, so... I don't want to waste any more of your time!"

"_Venomoth!_" the giant moth answered, nodding to Tracey's aging Scyther. The mantis Pokemon was sharpening his blades, taking care not to have them lose their edge.

"No problem, Tracey, it was us who wanted to help you with the job!" Brock gently answered, his Rhydon and Graveller placing some more wood in the pile. "After all, we don't have a timetable, and the day is still long... it was no problem at all to stop here for a while."

"And it wasn't even hard, even with my arm..." Ash went on, scratching his Tauros behind an ear... and getting subsequently glomped by a rather jealous Muk! Trying to keep his balance under the slimy Pokemon's huge weight, the young boy hugged Muk back as best as he could! "Hehehee... alright, Muk, alright already! You all did a great job, everyone! Alright, Tracey, if it's okay with you, and you don't need any more help, we'll get going."

"No worries, guys, it's okay!" the young artist answered. "You can go wherever you want... oh, and Ash, give your Pidgeot my best regards! I might hop there and go visit him one of these days!"

"Okay,I will make sure I do that!" Ash jauntily answered while he, Pikachu, Misty, Brock and their Pokemon waved at Tracey and his own Pokemon and started walking away.

"_Pika chu!_" Pikachu squeaked to Venomoth and Scyther. The giant moth screeched as a sign of saying goodbye, and the praying mantis did a deep bow, standing in position until Ash and his friends were no longer visible. Then, with a wistful expression, he looked at one of his arm-blades, as if trying to see something inside its reflective surface... and sighed sadly.

So much time had gone by, and now...

"Hey, Svyther, are you okay?" Tracey asked, catching him off guard. The praying mantis jumped up a little, feeling some slight irritation. Had he grown so old and dull, that now it wasn't even difficult to catch him unaware? But he quickly composed himself, and nodded to his trainer with a stoic expression on his face. "Well... that's good, Scyther! Okay, now Azumarill and I will carry this wood! I think you've done more than your share today, and I'm thankful for that!"

"_Scyther!_" the Bug / Flying type answered, and as Tracey opened up his third Pokeball to let Azumaril out, Scyther looked at the treetops.

Just a little more... only a little more...

Tracey's Venomoth turned a suspicious glance at her comrade. There was something wrong about him, and she wasn't sure what was that...

**oooooooooo**

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**My apologies for the long wait, I had hit some writer's block. But don't worry, I'll make sure next one arrives sooner. I have a new timetable ready, and hopefully it will help me organizing everything. **

**Please review and let me know what you think.**


	46. Saying Goodbye

**POKEMON HEART SOUL ADVENTURES**

**oooooooooo**

**Saying Goodbye**

Sadly, the weather forecast had been accurate... a few hours after Ash and his friends were back from visiting Pidgeot and his companions, the sky became covered in black clouds... and the young trainers had been just in time to lock themselves in the Ketchum house or wherever they were staying, before a truly impressive downpour had begun. A thick, insistent rain that had continued through the night, and that even now, in the early afternoon of the day after, was forcing everyone to stay at home.

Boredom could almost be felt in the Ketchum household, which Brock had luckily managed to break by proposing a few distractons such as some card games... but even that could only last so long, and both humans and Pokemon were soon back where they had started...

Dawn, looking at the falling rain from the window glass, placed her head on the palm of her hand and sighed, staring blankly at her bare toes sticking out of her leg casts - which were already bearing a few scribblings and signatures from her friends. Two weeks had passed since the incident in which the blue-haired pre-teen had broken both her legs, and the pain had mostly subsided... but the humidity of that particular day had the annoying effect of making her healing leg bones sting again. And not being able to stand from that wheelchair for at least a month wasn't improving her sullen mood very much.

Pikachu and Piplup, for their part, were trying to keep her company and liven up the mood with some comedic tricks and stunts. With a short, gentle giggle, Misty picked up the two Pokemon and placed Piplup in Dawn's lap, causing the blue-haired coordinator to pet the penguin-like Pokemon and gently scratch his head.

"Thank you, Pikachu... Piplup... I know you're doing your best to make the day less boring..." Ash said, picking up his best friend and scratching him behind an ear with hs uncasted hand. "I just wish this rain would stop... it's been pouring down since last evening..."

"If only we had some wood, we could light up a nice fire in the hearth!" Delia said gently, pointing at the fireplace around which Mimy was listlessly sweeping. "Can you imagine how great it would be to sit around a fire, chatting together? There's nothing better than that to spend the time, when the weather is so bad!"

"_Mr. Mime!_" Mimy answered with a shrug.

"Well, if you'd like to, I can throw a pullover on and..." Brock started to say, being interrupted when there was a knock at the door, drawing everyone's attention. A curious Misty went to answer, and was left quite surprised when she saw Tracey and his Scyther standing right out there, covered in yellow rain mantles, and carrying several wooden logs, exactly like the ones the young artist and his mantis-like Pokemon were picking up in the forest the day before.

"Hello, everyone! I hope we aren't bothering you, but I thought you might have liked to have some wood to burn in the chimney!" Tracey said, raising a hand in greeting. "And we also thought you could use some company too, so... here we are!"

"Oh, hello, Tracey! Please, come in... and your Scyther too, of course!" Delia greeted back, motioning for the young man and his Pokemon to enter while Misty kept the door open. Tracey and Scyther thanked her, and as soon as the young artist had wiped his shoes clean and closed his umbrella, they entered, carrying the firewood with them... and right behind them came Gary, professor Oak, Zoey, Kenny, Johanna and even Ursula, all of whom seemed to be dealing with the same problem as Ash's team, and were probably thinking it would be nice to at least spend the afternoon together.

"Thank you, everyone... and please excuse all the people I've brought with me!" Tracey said with a wink. "But, well, what can I say, we have the same problem with rain keeping us from doing anything..."

"And we figured it wouldn't hurt to at least spend some time together, while we're here." Gary completed Tracey's sentence.

Ursula shrugged, keeping some distance from the rest of the group. "Don't look at me. I am only here because I have nothing better to do." the rich heiress answered, checking her drill-curls to make sure they hadn't gotten damp.

"Well, you still got here at the right moment!" Misty exclaimed. Dawn was joyously greeting Kenny, Zoey and Gary, while Ash, Brock, Delia and Mimy tried to help Tracey and his Scyther with the firewood. "In fact, at this point, it would be a great idea if you stayed here and spent some time with us, so we can get over the boredom! Sorry, miss Delia... the offer of an afternoon around the fire is still valid, I suppose."

"Of course it is, Misty dear!" Delia answered, to which the red-haired former Gym Leader got down to business and went to get some wooden logs, checking them to see that they weren't too damp. Then, she began placing them orderly in the fireplace, putting them in a pile so that the fire would quickly spread to them. Brock, as the outdoors expert, went to help her with the wood... and as soon as the heap of firewood became large enough, the two former Gym Leaders nodded in satisfaction while some of their friends prepared even more wood.

"Wow, that's quite a good idea, Misty!" Kenny commented. "In fact, with this terrible weather, sitting around a nice fire sounds like a very nice plan! And it will make for a different way to spend the day!"

"I can't help but agree with that, Kenny!" Dawn answered as her mom pushed her wheelchair close and helped her sit on the sofa where several of the others had already taken their place. Misty and Brock finished placing the logs, and Delia lit up a match and carefully placed it at the base of the heap of wood placed in the hearth. It didn't take long for the fire to take hold, and the wooden heap was turned into a nice fire that began spreading a soothing warmth and a pleasant smell of burnt wood in the whole house. The team grouped around the now healhy fire, enjoying a comfortable moment that had been possible because of the horrible weather still raging outside.

"Aaaah! That hits the spot!" Ash happily commented. "With such a weather, one loses even the will to go out and train his Pokemon, but at least it's nice to spend the day together like that. Don't you agree, guys?"

"We... agree with that 100 per cent, Ash!" Misty answered with a smile while sitting besides him, taking care to pick the side of his unbroken arm. The motive was soon apparent to Ash - the red-haired Water trainer affectionately leaned on him, trying to stay as close to him as possible... and after a moment of embarassment and half-heartedly trying to get some distance, Ash decided that he might as well stay where he was, and allowed Misty to place her head on his shoulder. He had to admit, it was a pleasant feeling... and he was surprised himself when he got enough courage to hold Misty's delicate hand in his own.

"_Oh boy... what's the matter with me?_" he asked himself in slight, yet for some reason pleasant, confusion. "_I really don't remember ever... well... ever having this much confidence with Misty... and it feels very nice too, to be honest!_"

"_Ash is holding my hand... I can't believe it, Ash is really holding my hand!_" Misty thought to herself, hoping that the rapidly-spreading red hue on her face wasn't all that evident. Luckily, the dim lighting the living room was bathed in made it hard to see the details of her face...

And good old Brock and Tracey, who seemed to know better than even the two younger trainers, put themselves in a somewhat removed position from Ash, Misty and Pikachu, tooking at each other in a gesture of understanding, while Tracey's aging Scyther regarded the young Pokemon Master in training and Cerulean City's former Gym Leader with some nostalgia. He was reminded of the period of time in which, after leaving his swarm, he had joined Tracey's team, four years ago...

Really, those four years had been so happy... and the thought they were about to end saddened Scyther, who winced a little as he felt a sharp pain in his chest. It faded soon enough, though, and Scyther quickly managed to once again put up his facade of relative health...

The Sinnoh group seemed to be quite pleased as well, as Dawn and her Piplup were taking advantage of the situation to chat with Zoey, Kenny and Gary, while Zoey's Glameow, after rubbing affectionately on his trainer's leg, received a scratch on the ear in reward, laid down close to the fire, enjoying the warmth!

"You know, this kinda reminds me of when I was on Mt. Coronet with Maylene and Candice... didn't I tell you, Dawn? I had to do withthose Team Vicious jerks too..." Zoey was saying to her younger friends. "See, on the way, the other girls and I stopped to rest in this place belonging to a friend of Candice's family... and now that we are all together in front of a fire, it kinda reminded me of that time!"

"Wow, Zoey, that must have been one heck of an adventure!" Kenny sighed. "Man, if I think you were in such great places, fighting against a dangerous group of ciminals, while I was only concenrating on teaching new tricks to my Pokemon... I feel kinda ridiculous, you know?"

Dawn chuckled good-naturedly. "You were not ridiculous at all, Kenny!" she stated. "And believe me... considering all the dangers we had to face, you wouldn't be so envious of us if you knew what we lived through..."

"I... suppose you've got a point here, Dee-Dee..." an embarassed Kenny answered, averting his glance. In fact, in his enthusiasm, he had almost forgotten that his friends, especially Ash and Dawn, had risked their lives in their adventures. And besides which, it was nice to be sitting in a warm living room together, happily chatting about what had been...

It was then that Kenny noticed someone who did not seem to be that thrilled about the whole thing. "Hm? Hey, Ursula, are you alright? You don't look that thrilled..."

The spiral-haired girl was somewhat startled. and turned towards Dawn, Zoey and Kenny, shaking herself out of her funk. "Er..." she murmured in embarassment, before trying to look nonchalant. "Me, not thrilled? That's not the case, I was just, well... just thinking that this is my first time siting in front of a fire with all these people! We don't have an hearth like this at home, we have an heating system that uniformly warms up the entire house!"

Ursula was saying this with a proud tone to her voice, almost as if she thought an hearth was primitive... but Gary could hear a slight envious accent to Ursula's comment, and he suspected that, deep down, Ursula wasn't that resentful of the more dated method of warming people...

"Well, that is interesting. But I'm willing to bet it's not quite the same thing when it comes to making you feel at home." Gary answered with a cunning smile. Ursula frowned and glared at Gary in slight annoyance, but then sighed and decided it wasn't worth getting angry about. She had to admit that the young researcher did have a point...

The afternoon was spent this way, chatting and having fun with each other like a group of close friends and lifelong companions, sitting around a fire and talking about the latest news and their lives, and trying to involve the others as much as possible in the conversation. While the rain was still beating mercilessly outside, inside the Ketchum household the sun still seemed to be shining!

Still, none of them could imagine how much, and how soon, things were going to get worse...

**oooooooooo**

"Well, this was sure an entertaining afternoon! Professor Oak, Gary... it was a pleasure, come back whenever you want!" Delia thanked as, several hours later, the reunion between friends was over, and everyone was beginning to return to the places they were staying at. "And you too, Tracey, Scyther... it was very kind of you to bring the firewood! Thank you so much!"

"No problem, miss Delia!" the young artist answered, a hand leaning out of the door in order to ascertain whether it was still raining. Luckily, the downpour seemed to have ceased, and there was no more need to open up their umbrellas or run under the rain! "In fact, we are the ones who should thank you, we spent a very nice afternoon!"

"In that case, we'll have to organize another one as soon as possible!" Delia answered. "Tracey... everyone... see you soon!"

"_Mr. Mime!_" Mimy waved at them.

"_Pika pikachu!_" Even Pikachu joined the greetings, moving his right hand in a friendly wave.

"Thanks for keeping us company, guys! We really appreciated it!" Misty thanked, shaking Zoey's hand. The two redheads seemed to have instantly clicked...

"It's no problem! Thank you so much!" Kenny answered, he and Dawn exchanging an high-five.

Ursula felt the need to thank as well. "Well... truth be told, I was at a loss for what to do... and this reunion, so to speak, wasn't too shabby." she affirmed. "I wouldn't mind doing it another time soon."

"It's decided, then! As soon as it rains again like that, we'll gather in front of the lit chimney again!" Ash said, giving a thumbs-up with his uncasted hand. "See you soon, everyone!"

"And if you need anything... do not hesitate to ask me!" Mrs. Ketchum wanted to add.

"Thank you, Mrs. Ketchum. It will certainly be a pleasure!" Proffesor Oak answered as everyone exchanged the proper greetings before departing. Gary, his grandfather, Tracey and his Scyther began walking back towards the lab, in order to put things in order and close for the day...

The lab was only a couple steps away when Tracey turned for a moment towards his Scyther, just to make sure the aging Pokemon could keep up... and saw that the Bug / Flying type had stumbled, using one of his bladed arms as a prop, and panting heavily.

"Scyther!" Tracey exclaimed. Gary and his grandfather turned to see what was going on, worried for the mantis-like Pokemon. Luckily, he seemed to recover quickly, and stood up again, shaking his head as if to clear it.

"_Scy!_" he exclaimed with a nod. The three humans, well knowing that Scyther was of respectable age, and was probably trying to assuage their worries by acting nonchalant, still wanted to make sure he was alright, and Tracey gently put a hand on the mantis' shoulder, bending down to his eye level.

"Scyther, you sure you're okay?" Tracey anxiously asked. "I don't mean to offend you... but you're not a youngling any more, are you sure you can afford to strain yourself? I think you should stay at home for a few days, what about it? Then... when you're feeling better, we'll go take a stroll through Viridian Forest, like we did yesterday!"

Scyther cracked a smile, and then glanced up, somewhat alarmed, towards Professor Oak, who was getting close to the mantis-like Pokemon and was looking at him worriedly, rubbing his chin. It looked like something was troubling him, and Gary and Tracey could see that as well. "What's the matter, grandpa? Is everything alright with Scyther?" the young researcher asked.

"Well.." Oak answered, hoping he had not caused needless alarm. "No, Scyther doesn't seem to have anything wrong, at least at first sight... but I can't really say what's the matter with him without a better examination. Maybe it would be wiser to do a check-up to your Scyther tomorrow morning. It's just to be sure, of course. It is wise to be prudent, with Pokemon of such age."

"Alright, professor. Then... we'll have Scyther do a check-up tomorrow, right after breakfast." Tracey said, before turning to his Pokemon with a smile. "But don't worry, Scyther, it won't be anything serious. We'll just have to see if everything is alright. It won't take long, don't worry!"

"_Scyther..._" the mantis-like Pokemon murmured, frowning weakly...

**oooooooooo**

"Alright, time to get dinner ready!" Brock exclaimed, cracking his knuckles with a radiant smile. "Mrs. Ketchum, you don't mind if I lend you a hand in fixing it up, do you?"

"I'd like to lend a hand too, for what I can." Dawn offered, pushing her wheelchair towards the kitchen, Johanna quickly walking up to her in order to help her. "I know I can't move much, but there must be something I can do..."

"Well... thank you, everyone, that's very much appreciated!" Delia answered, seeing that Ash, Misty, Pikachu and Piplup were reordering the couch on which they had been sitting. All that travelling and those experiences had done wonders for Ash's attitude... "Still, don't feel like you're obligated, you are guests after all!"

"It's no problem, Mrs. Ketchum. Its a pleasure for us as well." Johanna answered, everyone getting things ready for dinner...

**oooooooooo**

Night had fallen upon Pallet Town... and after a tremendous downpour that had scared quite a few people, the town was sleeping tight. The sky was relatively clear, at least for now, and it was decorated with countless stars and a beautiful crescent moon, giving the rural town an air of calm and rest.

But right then, close to the Oak Labs, someone was not resting, and was not feeling calm at all.

Moving warily and slowly, Tracey's sCyther slipped out of the shadows, looking around for anyoe who could have seen him as he sneaked out of the small town. In spite of his advanced age, the mantis-like Pokemon still had a good eyesight, and was able to catch even the slightest movements among the shadows of the night. Still, nobody seemed to be around... and Scyther sighed in relief and caught his breath before being back on his way. A short pang of melancholy stopped him, and he turned to the laboratory's closed window, peeking inside where Gary's Pokemon were sleeping along with Tracey's. Inside, Scyther could make out the sleeping forms of Azumarill and Venomoth, the now evolved forms of the Marill and Venonat he had been travelling with, unaware of the empty place close to them. Scyther smiled sadly and stood there, as if to affix their images in his mind... then, murmuring what sounded like words of farewell, he turned away and continued walking away, taking a good look around.

But it was not out of fear that he might be noticed. This time, Scyther wanted to take a good last look at Pallet Town, before leaving it for good. He had spent the happiest years of his life in that town, even though they were his twilight years, and he had nothing but good memory of that place, his trainer, and all the people he had known there. Now, as he looked at the houses, the newly-built Pokemon Center and the Pokemon Market, Scyther wanted to make sure these images were with him during his last journey...

He had hoped he could keep it hidden from Tracey until the end... But now that his trainer, Gary and Oak were beginning to have suspects, the time for hesitating was past. He would walk away, unnoticed, following the trail until his legs could carry him no more... and then, he would lay there and spend his last moments recalling his life.

Forty years... a remarkably long life for a Bug-type Pokemon... the last four of which spent alongside the person who had given him the most happiness, and his friends...

Then, without any tears, he would pass away.

It was better this way, than causing needless sorrow to Tracey for something he could do nothing to prevent anyway. The almighty mistress called age was soon to take him.

Scyther walked away, disappearing in the thick vegetation around Pallet Town...

**oooooooooo**

"Phew... the weather sure got a lot better..." Ash stated, walking out of home and breathing in some fresh air. The sun was shining upon Pallet Town again, but the morning was still rather cold, and the young trainer shivered a little as he felt a light breeze blowing upon him. Pikachu, for his part, seemed to feel perfectly at home, perhaps because of the fact that the air right after the storm made him feel charged with electricity. "After such a downpour, the sun seemes to shine even brighter!"

"Yeah, too bad it's still somewhat damp out here... but I don't thnk it will take too long to dry up anyway." Dawn commented, pushing her wheelchair out of the house. The blue-haired girl was trying to get around on her own, so that she didn't have to rely on her friends and she didn't let her injuries slow her down, and after covering her toes with a couple of large black socks, she had gone out to pay a visit to Zoey and Kenny, and to take a look at professor Oak's lab.

"You're right... but still, try not to exert yourself too much, okay, Dawn?" Brock reccomended. "It's good that you want not to rely on others too much, but remenber you're still on the mend."

"Alright, Brock..." Dawn answered. Her attention was then drawn by a small group heading towards them at a quick pace, a group composed of Tracey, Gary and Zoey, along with Tracey's Venomoth, Gary's Arcanine and Zoey's Ninetales, who seemed to be looking for something, or someone, with urgency. "Oh, hi guys! What's the matter? Is there any problem?"

"I'm afraid I have to say there is, Dawn." Zoey answered. "Something very strange just happened. Tracey's sCyther has just... disappeared. We can't find him anywhere, and we have no idea where he could have gone."

"_Pika?_" Pikachu asked, and even Dawn's Piplup, who didn't know Tracey's Pokemon all that well, blinked in surprise. That Scyther sure didn't look like the kind of Pokemon to just up and disappear...

"What?" Misty asked, widening her eyes. It was both alarming and strange, considering Tracey and Scyther were inseparable. The fact that Scyther had disappeared like that sure didn't bode well... "Tracey... are you sure he just went away on his own? It all sounds so... strange, at least to me!"

"Well, I know... it's strange indeed... but we have no other explanation! We found some of his footprints going out of the lab, but then we lost track of him. He's been careful not to let us follow him." Gary answered, his Arcanine sniffing the air as he looked for Scyther's scent. It was a strange situation indeed... and the feeling of tension that accompanied everyone, especially Tracey and his Venomoth, was almost palpable.

"_Venomoth! Venomoth?_" the giant moth asked Arcanine, who kept sniffing the air for a moment, and then shook his head.

"Darn..." Tracey murmured, clenching a hand into a fist in anxiety. "Where on Earth can Scyther be, then? At his age... I mean, e never went that far away from Pallet Town, lately, and I can't see why he started to do it now!"

"Let's keep our head on our shoulders, okay?" Zoey exclaimed, her Ninetales joining Gary's Arcanine in the search. "Prfessor Oak stayed at the lab to check on something that might have to do with Scyther's disappearence... and Kenny, Mrs. Johanna and that rich snob are searching as well. We'll find him before you can realize it."

Or at least, that's what the red-haired coordinator hoped, but even she was afraid that finding the aging mantis Pokemon was going to be hard. Luckily, Ash and his friends didn't have to think long about it to decide what to do. "Well, in any case, we're joining the search as well!" the young man exclaimed, lifting Tracey's spirit somewhat.

"Thanks, Ash... you're a friend!" the young artist thanked him. "I owe you one."

"Oh, come on, Tracey, that's nothing... okay, first off, I think we should check the ourskirts of the village, maybe Scyther did leave some tracks there..." Ash proposed. The team immediately began heading in that direction, with Zoey pushing Dawn's wheelchair so that her friend wouldn't have trouble catching up.

Sadly, they couldn't find much either. There were a few prints inthe mud, showing that Scyther had indeed passed through that place, but there was nothing else in sight, and no amount of looking around seemed to help Ash and his friends... at least, until Arcanine and Ninetales managed to catch a faint scent, which Gary's Fire-type canine Pokemon immediately associated with Scyther! He sniffed the air just to make sure, and turned to the team.

"_Nine! Nine!_" he barked, wagging his bushy tail while pointing towards a narrow road that went into the large green fields surrounding Pallet Town! There was no more doubt about it... for whatever reason, Scyther had gone that way.

"Alright, Arcanine! Thanks for your help!" Gary complimented the large tiger-dog while petting him on the head, and Arcanine closed his eyes in an expression of content. "Alright, then let's search that way..."

"What reason could Scyther have had to go that way, anyway?" Misty asked herself, noticing that, for some strange irony of the situation, the narrow road was headed towards the same river where she had met Ash, four years ago. Brock rubbed his forehead, wincing in sudden realization... as if he suddenly remembered something very serious! "Huh? What's the matter, Brock? Why the long face?"

The darker-skinned boy winced again, mentally kicking himself for having been so obvious... and as he tried to think of a way to put it delicately, Professor Oak's well-known voice spared him this burden. The famous Pokemon researcher had come out of his lab to search for his friends and tell them the news. "I... I'm afraid I know, my friends." Oak started, with a rather worried expression on his face, as if he had a secret he wasn't eager to tell but had no other choice. Kenny, Ursla and Johanna were right behind him, and none of them seemed less worried than he was. Again, it didn't take a genius to see something was very wrong with the whole picture...

"_Piplup?_" a surprised Piplup chirped. "_Piplup piplup, pip?_"

"Mom, you too!" Dawn exclaimed. "But... what's going on? You all look like you're about to attend to a funeral or something..."

"Sadly, Dee-Dee... I'm afraid this isn't that far from the truth." Kenny answered. "Professor Oak... I'm not sure I can say this, can you please...?"

"And please, try to put it kindly..." Johanna reccomended, which only confirmed that it was something serious. Oak nodded in agreement and took a deep breath, trying to find the right words and looking at the group of teens and preteens that seemed to be in anxious wait...

"Please, Professor, don't keep us hanging..." Ash pleaded. "What is the matter? What's up with Scyther?"

"Is it... something serious? Please, professor, don't hide anything..." Tracey continued, sounding more and more frantic every moment.

Finlly, Oak heaved a sigh and gathered all of his courage, trying to tell the news with all the restraint he was capable of. "Tracey, son... I'm afraid... this is something that's hard to say..." he started sadly. "You see... the reason why I stayed at the lab was because I needed to consult one of my old books about Bug-type Pokemon. I... went back to the Scyther chapter and re-read it as quickly as I could... And I was reminded that... well... A Scyther only abandons his swarm and begins wandering the wildlands when... well..."

"When...?" Misty repeated almost frantically. She saw Kenny, Ursula and Johanna look at the ground, a moment before Oak ended his sentence.

"When his life... is about to come to... an end..."

The young trainers felt like a thunderbolt had struck out of nowhere, stunning them with a deafening boom! So... that was it? Scyther... was about to pass away... of old age? He had walked away... because he was searching for a quiet place... where he could lay down and sleep forever?

"Wh... What...?" Tracey mouthed. "T-then... Scyther... no... this can't be... I... I suspected nothing of this... I... didn't imagine... he was about to... How... how could I not see that? What... what kind of trainer am I? I... I can't even understand... when one of my Pokemon..."

"Tracey! Tracey, please, it's pointless to blame yourself..." Ash exclaimed, as Tracey's Venomoth got closer to his trainer and tried to soothe him.

"Ash is right, son..." Oak went on. "Scyther... didn't want you to see how he was feeling, for the same reason he went away without telling you anything: he... didn't want you to be saddened and worry about you... considering that, unfortunately, you couldn't have prolonged his life anyway. Science... has made a lot of progress, that's true... but unfortunately, even it cannot do much to stave off the effects of time and the laws f nature..."

Tracey's eyeswatered, and the young man glanced down, clenching his fists. "At... At least... I could have comforted him... let him not feel alone in his last days..."

"It might still not be too late!" Misty exclaimed, shaking Tracey by the shoulder. "Maybe, if he hasn't gone too far... maybe we still have a chance of finding him before..." the redhead gulped, not daring to say something that was hard ever for her to accept. "Come on, everyone, let's at least try! It's... it's not like we have anything to lose, is it?"

"You're right about that..." a somber Zoey answered. "Ninetales... please follow Scyther's scent and take us where he is now!"

"Arcanine, lend her a hand." Gary went on, his dog-like Pokemon nodding in agreement. Both canine Pokemon started their search, as Professor Oak sighed and placed a comforting hand on Tracey's shoulder. If he really wanted to assist Scyther in his final moments, it was only fair that he knew what he was facing.

"Tracey, son... I would never want to interfere in your decisions..." he said severely. "But... it is only right that you are warned. It is not easy to watch someone you care about pass away... and I know there is a deep bond between you and your Scyther. I'm telling you this because... well... back when I was a trainer myself, I saw a few of my Pokemon go like this, with me being unable to do anything for them except stay there and comfort them. You... need strength in order to do this. Are you really sure you can do this, Tracey?"

"Yes, Professor..." Tracey answered with an heavy heart. "Now more than ever."

Oak nodded. "Fine then, son... I won't try to stop you." he affirmed. "I just hope you can get there in time..."

Arcanine and Ninetales barked in unison, pointing to the narrow road going towards the river... and the group of young trainers began running after them, trying not to waste any moment. "Looks like Arcanine and Ninetales have found a lead..." Brock stated. "Professor Oak, please excuse us... time is of the essence right now!"

"Of course, young ones... I hope you get there in time..." Oak stated. Everyone nodded, running after Arcanine and Ninetales. In record time, only Oak and Johanna had remained there, looking in apprehension and sadness the team as they got ready to say goodbye to a Pokemon that had a place in their hearts. Delia reached Oak and Johanna a few moments, later, looking rather upset and worried herself. "Oh... Mrs. Delia, are you okay? Ash and his friends went that way... they had something very important to do..."

"That's what I wanted to speak to you about, professor Oak..." Mrs. Ketchum said. "What's going on? It seemed to me that they were all quite upset..."

"It's... kind of a touchy subject, Delia..." the scientit answered. "If you would come with me and Mrs. Johanna, so that I can explain..."

**oooooooooo**

The heart of a small forest, close to Pallet Town. A quiet, silent place where one could sit and immerse himself in the beauty of nature, surrounded by wild flowers, the quiet sound of the nearby river, and the chirping of the wild bird... that was just was Scyther, who was now sitting under a tree, surrounded by tall bushes, considered a good place to close his eyes for the last time. There was no hiding it any more: Scyther felt like he couldn''t breathe much longer, his legs were failing him, and his strength was slowly but surely vanishing. He knew he only had a few minutes left... and decided to spend them thinking back on his life, what he had done, and asking himself whether, in the end, he could consider himself satisfied...

He was born forty years before, in a large Scyther swarm... and ever since he was very young, he had honed his skills in order to become a skilled hunter and a leader for the other Scythers, managing to become the alpha in record time. For many years he had remained a strong, respected hunter and leader... until the ruthless master that was time had claimed the strength of his body, even though his spirit had remained untouched... and after reaching a venerable age for a Scyther, he had lost his fangs, and it had been all too easy for a younger, stronger Scyther to defeat him in a ritual fight and claim his place as swarm leader.

Luckily, that was when he had met Tracey, that young artist with a noble and caring heart, who had offered him to become a member of his team. Scyther could scarcely believe it - even as old and weak as he was, he still had a chance to be useful to someone, and show himself that he still had worth... and the there were those two young friends of Tracey, Ash and Misty, that had made the journey even more fun and worthwhile...

It was with him that Scyther lived the happiest years of his life... his rivalry with Ash's Charizard... Ash and Misty's awkward moments together... the battles in the Orange Island Gyms... and finally, the fantastic battle Ash had sustained against Drake, the Orange Islands Champion, ending in Ash's victory! Scyther could say that he had never seen such an incredible fight...

Then, the three years he had lived in Pallet Town, helping Tracey in his job as Professor Oak's assistant... perhaps a simple, unassuming job, just a great way for someone as old as he was to remain active without straining himself. And he was working at his friend's side anyway...

Smiling sadly, Scyther glanced up at the bright blue sky, covered in fluffy white clouds. His only regret was... not having said goodbye to Tracey before dying...

"Scyther!"

The mantis-like Pokemon widened his eyes. Were his ears playing tricks on him, or was that really...?

An unmistakeable sound of steps on the grass... then, the bushes he had hid into moved, and Scyther saw Tracey arriving, with Azumarill and Venomoth in tow, and Ash, Pikachu and Misty following close behind! The young artist sat beside his Pokemon, tears in his eyes.

"Scyther..." Tracey murmured, managing a sad smile. "Scyther, I... sorry, I... I just had to come... I couldn't leave you alone right now, not when you are..." his voice faltered, and the young teen had to breathe deeply in order to continue. "Wh... didn't you say anything, Scyther? I... could have supported you... helped you in this final moment..."

"_Scy... scytherrrr..._" the mantis-like Pokemon answered, touched by his trainer's thoughtfulness. He looked at Ash and Misty, who were standing there in saddened silence, trying to at least be of moral support... and to the slowly nodding Pikachu.

"_Pikachu..._" the yellow mouse answered sadly. "_Pika pi pikachu pi pika pichu... pika pika pikachu, pika!_"

"We know, Scyther... we know..." Tracey answered, understanding what Pikachu wanted to say. "You... didn't want to make me sad, my friend... but you shouldn't have worried... You... are one of my Pokemon... and one of my greatest friends! What kind of trainer would I be... if I weren't going to stay close to you in your moment of need? And... that goes for Azumarill and Venomoth too! See? They're here to... say goodbye."

The aquatic rabbit and the giant moth approached their fading teammate, trying to stay close to him in his final moments... and Tracey gently held one of Scyther's blade-arms. The mantis Pokemon shuddered slightly, even though his sigt was almost gone now. Darkness was creeping upon him, but the warm feeling of Tracey's hand... that he could never mistake for anything else.

"And... there's everyone else here, you know?" Tracey said, looking beyond the bushes, where a group of trainers and Pokemon was solemnly watching. Dawn, Piplup, Zoey, Ninetales, Kenny, Gary, Arcanine, Ursula, Brock... all of them were keeping a courtesy distance, but they were partecipating as much as they could. "They're all here, now... because you're our friend, Scyther! We... couldn't leave you alone, not now! We... had to at least say goodbye to you... Thank you, Scyther... for all the good you brought to our lives... and all the affection and lve you gave us. We... will never forget you... Never..."

"_Venomoooth!_" the giant moth murmured, hiding her face behind one of her ample wings, as Azumarill placed his hand upon Scyther's other blade-arm and smiled tearfully at him. Looking around himself for the last time, Scyther could see the grieving, but still grateful, faces belonging to Ash, Pikachu, Misty... and while he couldn't see that far anymore, he felt that all the others wore the same expression...

And that was when Scyther was sure of it - he was surrounded with people who loved him and would never forget him. Now he knew that his life had been well spent.

The last thing Scyther ever saw was Tracey's warm smile...

...and, with a smile on his own face, Scyther closed his eyes for the last time and welcomed his eternal rest.

All around them, nature was going on like usual... but to Ash and his friends, it was like time had stopped as Tracey's silent tears fell upon Scyther's blades. Ash held Pikachu with his good arm and hugged the crying Electric-type for all he was worth, releasing his own tears... and then allowed Misty to hug him and cry on his shoulder.

Brock and Gary stood in silence, glancing somberly at the ground.

Dawn covered her face with her hands and began sobbing, and Zoey tried to soothe her by hugging her from behind, but even the redheaded coordinator couldn't hold back a few tears herself. Kenny closed his eyes and began sobbing himself, only calming down when Dawn put a soothing hand on his back.

Ursula was trying to look indifferent... and failing miserably to do so, judging by her clenched, trembling hands and the tears running down her cheeks.

All of them wanted to do something for Tracey, who was still kneeling beside his Scyther, mourning his passing... and all of them knew that, whatever they tried, it would still be inadequate. They could do nothing but stay there, mutely partecipating to Tracey and his Pokemon's sorrow.

"Tracey... I'm sorry..." Ash said among tears, placing a hand on Tracey's shoulder. The young artist seemed to calm down a little, but continued sobbing, holding Scyther's blade-arms and caressing Venomoth and Azumarill with his free hand.

It was a sad day for them all. Saying goodbye had never been harder.

**oooooooooo **

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


End file.
